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Lee Adler: The Girls in His Family

 

At work, Lee Adler could write complex computer programs off the top of his head, never needing to write anything down. He took great pleasure in shaving nanoseconds off the time his elegant programs took to run, said his wife, Alice. Mr. Adler, 48, was a systems programmer at ESpeed, a division of Cantor Fitzgerald. He also coached his daughter's basketball, soccer and softball teams and was a trustee of Temple Beth Ahm in Springfield, N.J., Mrs. Adler said.

At home in Springfield, Mr. Adler liked being surrounded by all girls. The family consisted of one daughter, Lauren, a sheltie, Meghan, and two cats, Lindsey and Brenda. Mr. Adler and the pets had birthdays in March, and they celebrated together. He would take the dog to the pet store, and whatever she sniffed first was hers.

Mrs. Adler recalls his most recent birthday fondly. He had given her a pair of earrings for Valentine's Day, and for his (yes, his) birthday, he gave her the pin to match, a bear climbing on a piece of lapis. "He definitely loved all his girls," she said.

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From "Profiles in Grief" of The New York Times