Mario Nardone

Nothing Too Good for Mom
Mario Nardone called his mother Tuesday morning to say he had found just the doctor for her. Linda Nardone has serious knee problems, and her son, a 32- year-old bonds broker, had done a little research. "He said he found a doctor who took care of the pope and the doctor doesn't take insurance, but it doesn't matter," his mother said.

Mr. Nardone was the guy with the million-dollar smile and the million-dollar heart. He worked at Euro Brokers at 2 World Trade, but told his mother that he planned to quit in seven years so he could give back to humanity. Single and the oldest of three children, he split his time between his Upper East Side apartment and Staten Island, where he supported the Nardone household for two years. When Mrs. Nardone's husband fell gravely ill with cancer, he cut a check for his mother every month and opened a restaurant account for her. "There was nothing he didn't think of," she says.