Robert A. Campbell: Painter in the
Clouds
He
felt he worked on top of the world. Some days, the clouds
would just pass right through him.
Robert A. Campbell was a painter, and he was assigned
to the top of the World Trade Center. He found it so
tranquil up there, far removed from life's struggles. He
was employed by Fine Painting and Decorating. He had been
doing the observation deck and the window-cleaning
equipment. On Sept. 11, his parents believe, he was on
the roof.
Mr. Campbell, 25, lived with his parents, Robert and
Maureen Campbell, in Brooklyn, and he was an insistent
idealist. When he was a Cub Scout, he was picked to speak
at a meeting of labor leaders, and he spoke of how
important it was to get along with others and to be
helpful. Some day, he said, maybe he would end up being
the president of a labor union. "He believed in the
American dream &emdash; that everybody had a chance in
life and that if you worked together you could really
accomplish something," his mother said.
He enjoyed long rides in the country, where he could
gaze at the trees. He kept hundreds of pictures of trees.
To his parents, they looked alike; he would point out the
differences.
He had begun college in the evenings to study business
administration. He thought he might move into the
management of a painting company. His first day of
classes was Sept. 10.
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