Abdulrahman Zeitoun

Abdulrahman Zeitoun, a Syrian-American, was known by his American friends and customers in New Orleans simply as Zeitoun since his first name proved too difficult to pronounce. As young boys, Zeitoun and his older brother Ahmad fished at night for sardines with the village fishermen. Zeitoun's father was deceased so Zeitoun and Ahmad turned over all their earnings to their fragile mother to help support the family.

Ahmad became a sailor while Zeitoun stayed in the family village of Jableh and became a construction worker. But his mother sensed Zeitoun wasn't happy and yearned to venture out into the world. She asked Ahmad to get Zeitoun a position on his ship and allow him to go on their next journey. Ahmad complied and soon Zeitoun was a sailor, a career he stayed with for the next ten years.

Eventually Zeitoun made his way to America and settled...