Journey from Cameroon, Africa

I met a young man who was in our IT area. After 12 years here I would think I would have met most of the people or at least heard their names mentioned. But in IT, people seem to come and go so quickly.

This young, IT expert had an usual accent that I couldn't place. When I asked where he was from, he said, "Africa, the country of Cameroon." "Wow!" I thought, "I have so many questions." "How long have you been in the US?" "What is that accent?" "What brought you here?" "What's it like in Cameroon?" "Did you have a big family?" "Is your family still there?"

This is what he told me:

He was from a small farming community. He had 11 brothers and sisters. His farming father died of a heart attack (they think) in 2007 and shortly thereafter his mother died from surgery complications. He has felt responsible for his siblings ever since.

He had an uncle from the city who was well educated. This uncle was a role model for him and inspired him to go to school and get a job; to make his life "better."

After high school, in 2002, he joined the military in Cameroon. His military training was spent in Colorado and lasted two years. While here in the states, he quickly learned English. That accent I heard was French. He transferred back to the Cameroon, using his military trained IT skills to help the Cameroon army. He was given more responsibility and became in charge of the military budget. This job came with much anxiety due to the level of corruption. He said he was opposed to the level of corruption and ethically could not condone that behavior. His life was now in danger because of this dilemma. The level of corruption and crime runs deep in Cameroon and the military was no exception.

He put in for a transfer to the US. He said he wasn't "given a hard time" about it. In 2007 he was given a green card and offered a ticket to the US. He jumped on the plane and was excited to start a new chapter in his life, leaving his 10 siblings behind in Africa.

Because of his IT skills, he decided to start his own business. Things really took off - that was until the economy tanked. Customers vanished and he pulled the business out of the rental space back into his house and decided to look for a part-time job. He eventually landed at the college part-time and then became full-time.

In December, he successfully adopted three of his sisters and much like him, they boarded a plane for a new life here in the US. He had such a big smile on his face when he spoke about how fantastic Christmas was this year with family around. I asked him why just his sisters and why only three? He said, "it's too late for the others." "What do you mean too late?" I said. He said, "they are already corrupted or male and they'll be fine. It's very dangerous in Cameroon for women and these are the only ones I could afford to get out." Holy smokes - I thought. HOLY SMOKES! He said that there is so much poverty that everyone is a criminal of some sort. Stealing isn't even given a second thought. "You steal for money to just put food on the table," he said. He can't go back to Africa and live like that. He said he feels "it's not the right way to live."

His three sisters are having a tough time in school because of the language barrier. But he says they are excited to be here in the US. He proudly showed me a photo of them on the computer. Beautiful teenagers a bit "culture shocked (his words)"

He's been working on his computer certifications and still maintains his home business. He sends money back to the other siblings and is paying for all of their private schooling.

My time wound down and I had to leave. I thanked him for sharing his story with me and I congratulated him on having found a better life.

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