Michael Egan/Christine Egan:
Siblings and Close Friends
Peter
Pan was Michael. Wendy was Christine.
He always sang "I Won't Grow Up" from the Broadway
musical, and he meant it. Despite his image of mature
respectability -- after all, Michael Egan was a
51-year-old insurance company executive -- he sprayed
whipped cream on the bed sheets and taped down the
telephone of colleagues, then giggled as they struggled
to pick up the receiver.
His older sister Christine Egan, 55, was the mature
one, a nurse who always looked out for him and everyone
else, from the Inuit of the Canadian Arctic to the
Indians of Canada's central plains.
They came from Hull, England, and settled in Canada.
But they never surrendered their Yorkshire accents nor
their Britishness. Michael collected maps of Hull and
made a study of British beers. "He always reminded me of
being English," said Mr. Egan's younger sister,
Denise.
Christine never married but she traveled extensively
and was devoted to her patients. She was also determined
to continue her education. In 1999, at 53, she earned a
Ph.D. in community health service from the University of
Manitoba.
Michael and Christine were inseparable, said Mr.
Egan's wife, Anna. "At times I was jealous, that's how
close they were," she said.
In September. Christine flew to New Jersey from
Winnipeg to care for her brother's handicapped son
Matthew, 16, while the Egans celebrated their 20th
wedding anniversary in Bermuda. She arrived a few days
early, and on Sept. 11 accompanied him to his office at
Aon Insurance on the 105th floor of the World Trade
Center for a cup of coffee and a peek out the
windows.
Mrs. Egan said her husband always called her, no
matter where he was. He called that morning, too.
"You made it," she said.
"No, we're stuck," said Mr. Egan.
Then, still on the phone, she watched his
building collapse on television. "He had to call," she
said. "But all we could say is, `I love you,
darling.'"
.
