Kaaria Mbaya

Informality Suited Him
When Kaaria Mbaya was a young boy in Kenya, he threw a stone at his housekeeper's cat, breaking its leg. He was so pained by what he had done that he walked nearly three miles, with the wounded cat in his arms, to a veterinary clinic that is part of the University of Nairobi. He got the cat admitted using the name of his mother, a biochemistry professor at the university. She was confounded when she received a medical bill for a cat.

Mr. Mbaya's mother, Vertistine Mbaya, had looked forward to seeing her shy, compassionate son next summer, when he was to visit Kenya. He was raised there, where his father was a member of Kenya's first Parliament after the country became independent of British rule. His mother is American.

At 38, he was a computer analyst at Cantor Fitzgerald in 1 World Trade, a job that suited him. It was informal. And Mr. Mbaya, who lived in Edison, N.J., did not like to dress up.


Profile published in THE NEW YORK TIMES on September 29, 2001.


Kaaria Mbaya, 39, was generous to all Among the five children of the Mbaya family, 39-year-old Kaaria, the second oldest, was the accommodating one.

He would bend like a reed in the breeze, his baby sister Rosita Scarborough said, smiling at the memory of the other siblings testing their brother's generosity.

Like when he agreed to take care of the family house in Philadelphia, living there as the others used it as an occasional crash pad. Kaaria played housekeeper -- for years on end.

"I don't think it was necessarily something he wanted to do, but he never complained," Scarborough said. "He accommodated every family member in almost everything they did."

Mr. Mbaya, who had been living in Edison for the past two years, died on Sept. 11 at the World Trade Center office of Cantor Fitzgerald, where he was a senior computer analyst.

Mr. Mbaya was born and raised mainly in Nairobi, Kenya. He earned an electrical engineering degree from Villanova University in Pennsylvania and received a master's in computer science from St. Joseph's University, Bala Cynwyd, Pa.

He loved spending time in New York not only as a commuter but also as a cultural tourist, visiting museums, exploring Greenwich Village, trying new restaurants and sightseeing, Scarborough said.

She described her brother as deeply spiritual. He had an uncanny ability to sense others' feelings, reading body language closely enough to treat those close to him with a unique brand of quiet sensitivity.

"He had a deep affection for his family and friends," Scarborough said. "Everyone knew they could always count on Kaaria."

When Scarborough got engaged a year ago, she immediately called Mr. Mbaya -- her shyest, quietest, favorite brother -- and told him he would be the groomsman.

"He was overwhelmed," Scarborough said. "He knew there would be a lot of pomp and flash and he would be in the limelight."

But of course, he agreed instantly. Then he said he knew a co-worker who made wedding gowns and insisted on gleaning ideas from her. It was the first of many several-hour conversations Scarborough would have about her wedding with her brother. The wedding is scheduled for next June.

Also surviving Mr. Mbaya is his mother, Vertistine Beaman Mbaya of Nairobi; sister, Wanja of Phoenix, Ariz., and brothers, Njue of Burlington and Kibabu of Philadelphia, Pa.

Mr. Mbaya's funeral will be tomorrow at 10 a.m. at First Presbyterian Church, 101 Bridgeboro Road, Moorestown, with visitation starting at 9 a.m.

Donations can be made to the Kaaria Mbaya Memorial Education Fund, care of Professor Vertistine, 11 Tudor Drive, Burlington, N.J. 08016.