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Driven to Make Friends

Scott Saber was not famous, and he was probably not even the biggest spender at Wollensky's Grill in Midtown, one of his favorite spots for entertaining clients. But when news spread around the restaurant that he had been on the 106th floor of 1 World Trade Center on Sept. 11 and was among the missing, several members of the staff wrote memorial notes to send to his family. It wasn't a surprise.

"I'm sure that nearly everybody in that restaurant knew him by name because he schmoozed with all of them, from the busboys on up," said Mr. Saber's oldest brother, Bruce. "That was Scott."

It was a kind of theme in Mr. Saber's life. When he made acquaintances, it was not casually. When he made friends, they became like family. A friend recently became ill during a trip to Boston, and Mr. Saber, who worked for UBS Warburg, offered to drive up and get him. "He was not kidding," said his brother.

When it came to his family, Mr. Saber, 37, was unwavering. His other brother, Brian, recently adopted a baby from Vietnam. Upon returning to the city, Brian Saber learned that he was not going to be able to return to his own apartment. So for six months, Mr. Saber had shared his small, two-bedroom apartment on the Upper East Side with his brother and the 6-month-old baby.

Profile published in THE NEW YORK TIMES on November 3, 2001.