Coming to America

This is a true story about a young Englishman's quest to live and work in America after he tragically lost both of his parents to natural causes within two days of each other whilst on holiday on the Mediterranean island of Malta in October 1981. He came to America--to New York City--on the thirtieth of June 1985 with just two hundred dollars in his pocket. He had no relatives' or friends' shoulders to lean on when things became rough; he just had his drive and entrepreneurship to keep him going. It was rough for him during the first seven years--living in squalor in Kansas City, Missouri; not having electric in apartments and not having a car in Columbia, South Carolina; getting involved in a life-threatening car accident in Perry, Florida; having bicycles stolen in Valdosta, Georgia; and working illegally for those seven years with fake Social Security numbers. He eventually ended up living and working in Columbia, where he met and fell in love with his wife-to-be whilst working at a restaurant as a waiter. He proposed to his wife-to-be just before Christmas 1991. In July 1992, the young man travelled back to England to see his siblings, nephews, and nieces, and also to get his B1/B2 visa renewed. When he attempted to come back to America, the INS--the Immigration and Naturalisation Service--cornered him after suspecting that he was coming to America to work illegally. After they searched his pockets, their suspicions were correct. They had no other choice than to deport him and send him back to the UK. He was allowed one telephone call--just like citizens that have been arrested are allowed. That call was made to his fiancee. Sobbing, he said for her to forget about him. He was then escorted back to the aeroplane on which he flew back to England, thinking that he would never see his fiancee again. That's not the end of the story; just like in the fairy tales where the knight in shining armour rescues the damsel in distress, it was the other way around in this story; the damsel rescued the knight by obtaining a passport, travelling by herself to England, and sweeping the knight off his feet by marrying him! It was relatively plain sailing after that for the young man to be able to come back to America to live and work legally and to be with the love of his life.

-- Ian Broadbridge