Brian was one of the very first people I met and worked with after moving to New York. I will never take for granted the impact he has left on my life. Brian’s office was right next to the CHNY Legal Department where I used to work. His presence would fill up and brighten our entire corner of the shelter. One of my favorite Brian memories was when my boss, Jeff, decided to attach an entire broom to the bathroom key because people were always losing it. Brian’s face when he came to get the bathroom key and realized this was priceless. Instead of removing the broom and taking just the key as most folks would do, he passive aggressively took the entire thing to the bathroom with him and then pretended to dramatically sweep the floor all around our office on his walk back. He was constantly a source of entertainment. You could always hear him coming from a mile away whether he was laughing loudly with a youth or singing along to the Noname song he was playing on his phone. His contagious joy made even the hard days feel lighter. Nobody was better at working with the young people than Brian was. He was truly one of a kind. I am gutted by this loss, but I take comfort in knowing that hundreds of people are better because they had the privilege of knowing him. I also take comfort in knowing that he lived a bigger and more adventurous life than most do. I know he is resting easy with his sweet baby Millie by his side. We love you and miss you so much, Brian.
Brian was one of the very first people I met and worked with after moving to New York. I will never take for granted the impact he has left on my life. Brian’s office was right next to the CHNY Legal Department where I used to work. His presence would fill up and brighten our entire corner of the shelter. One of my favorite Brian memories was when my boss, Jeff, decided to attach an entire broom to the bathroom key because people were always losing it. Brian’s face when he came to get the bathroom key and realized this was priceless. Instead of removing the broom and taking just the key as most folks would do, he passive aggressively took the entire thing to the bathroom with him and then pretended to dramatically sweep the floor all around our office on his walk back. He was constantly a source of entertainment. You could always hear him coming from a mile away whether he was laughing loudly with a youth or singing along to the Noname song he was playing on his phone. His contagious joy made even the hard days feel lighter. Nobody was better at working with the young people than Brian was. He was truly one of a kind. I am gutted by this loss, but I take comfort in knowing that hundreds of people are better because they had the privilege of knowing him. I also take comfort in knowing that he lived a bigger and more adventurous life than most do. I know he is resting easy with his sweet baby Millie by his side. We love you and miss you so much, Brian.
