Joni Cesta

Dedicated Caregiver

Unlikely though it may seem from its name, Pumpkin is a boa constrictor, five feet of muscle and snake appeal that only an animal lover could cherish. Joni Cesta of Bellmore, N.Y., did. Her husband, Adam Kriftcher, definitely did not.

"I wouldn't go near it," Mr. Kriftcher confessed. But his wife had such a way with animals, and with people, that she converted his squeamishness into a reluctant tolerance that left him in perpetual wonderment at her special charms.

"That was one thing about her that was pretty cool," Mr. Kriftcher said. "You can tell a lot about people by how they are with animals."

Ms. Cesta, 37, was in-house counsel for A. L. Sarroff, a securities trading firm near the World Trade Center. On Sept. 11, she was visiting a client in the trade center.

From the time she won blue ribbons in equestrian tournaments when she was young, Ms. Cesta had a knack for taking honors and taking care of others.

Three years ago her father, John Cesta, had a small stroke, and Ms. Cesta flew to Florida to help him. "That's the kind of thing she always did," Mr. Cesta said.

When Mr. Kriftcher met Ms. Cesta in 1985 he was like a stray dog that she took in. "I used to be a compulsive gambler, bouncing from job to job, but she believed in me," he said. It was in his eyes all along, she had said, and she trusted in him despite signs to the contrary. "Not too many people would do that," he said.