Amenia Rasool

How did Amenia Rasool do it all? her mother-in-law now wonders. She would rise at 5 to do laundry before kissing her four children goodbye, leaving a tidy house in Queens to go to work as an accountant on the 95th floor of the World Trade Center. Every evening, she and her husband, Sadiq, a city accountant, would wash and feed the children as a team, dine as a twosome while the little ones watched TV, then help with schoolwork and put them all to bed.

Yet somehow, at the end of the day, after a husband-wife cleanup that included vacuuming and wiping down all the rugs in the Muslim household, Ms. Rasool, 33, found time for a small indulgence: catching up on tapes of her favorite soap operas and doing her nails.

As a young woman, she had come to America with her parents from rural Guyana, much like her husband. Their marriage was arranged by their parents, and flourished on a mix of Islamic tradition and American opportunity.

'They were really, really happy,' said Fahida Rasool, her mother-in-law, who recently left her job in a bank to help with the children, 8, 6, 3 years old and 10 months.

Copyright (c) 2001 by The New York Times Co. Reprinted by permission.
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It's hard to believe that its 15 years since I last saw Amenia at 1WTC. Whenever I'm in the town of Richmond Hill, New York (Queens) Amenia comes to my mind because we would always talk about the Caribbean and Guyana in terms of culture and food. She is remembered for her professionalism and efforts to ensure my expenses were paid in a timely fashion after business trips.
James "Jim" Smith, Colleague
Sep 11 2016 10:40AM
It was a pleasure working with Amenia at Marsh. Amenia handled my accounting matters for travel related expenses. But, I really enjoyed our discussions about family, culture, her place of birth (Guyana) and South America and the West Indies. She will always be remembered. Jim Smith (Enterprise Architecture Group, 1998 -2004)
Jim Smith, Colleague
Sep 11 2009 12:40PM
Life has never been the same since death had struck my beloved wife on 9/11/01. I have lost a wonderful wife and a devoted mother who made all sacrifies to ensure her family and her four children happiness came first. While words are not sufficient to explain and express my feelings of her lost, we retain the memories of the beautiful days we passed together the happiness she brought into our lives. Amenia was great wife and extraordinary mother. Amenia lived a short but very successful life and in the midst of it died with her awareness of love for humanity. We miss you very much, we love you and you will never be forgotten. Amenia your memories, your love and deep affection will continue to inspire us in all our endeavours.
SADIQ RASOOL, Family
Oct 6 2002 8:40AM
Amenia was my closest friend. She approached life differently than I do, but I loved her so dearly. We worked together for three years and I saw how dedicated she was to her work. She came in early to work each day, and tried her best to work on her tasks diligently. I remember how she talked about her family, including her parents, brothers and sisters whom she loved so much. She was a tough woman but deep inside, she was a kind-hearted woman. I miss her so much and pray for her family and loved ones. Jo Garcia 9/11/02 She talked of her desire to just stay home and take care of her children but one day decided to go back to work after her maternity leave.
Jo Garcia, Friend
Sep 11 2002 4:03AM
Amenia was a wonderful person, a true pleasure to know. We sat in front of eachother on the 98th Floor, she loved to shop. We would go shopping at least 3 days out of the week, we went to Century 21, Odd Job, Natalie's, etc. Sometimes we would get in early and go shopping before nine, and then we would go again during lunch time. We took the train together in after work sometimes we would run into her husband, which she always loved, she would look around for him everytime we got to the platform. She loved her children and her family very dearly, and they love her just as well. She will always remain in my heart.
Kathy, Colleague
Jun 11 2002 10:05AM