"We were friends since junior high, and we spoke together every day of our lives after college," says Dean Cirella of his friend and classmate Thomas J. Collins ’87. "It’s hard."

Tommy was a managing director of Sandler O’Neill and Partners, a full-service investment banking firm on the 104th floor of 2 World Trade Center, where he’d worked for 13 years. Tommy had survived the 1993 WTC attack; this time his firm lost more than 60 employees.

"Tommy had a real gift for friendship. He was great friends with everyone, and not just who you’d expect, but also the hot dog vendor, the dry cleaner. He was best man at nine weddings, including mine," says Cirella. "That says a lot about the man." Tommy’s friend David Silverstein ’87 (for whom he also served as best man) adds, "There were nearly 3,000 people at his funeral, including clients from as far away as Florida.

A four-year IC varsity lacrosse starter, Tommy was an avid boater, golfer, skier, and all-around sportsman. He married his "perfect match," Julia, in August 2000. She works for the National Football League and is "just as much of a fireplug as Tommy," says Cerilla. Tommy is also survived by his parents, Thomas and Dorothy, sisters, Colleen and Jennifer, and brother, Tim.