Being a security guard is no easy feat; it requires patience, keen eye for potential security risks, and a strong sense of responsibility for ensuring the safety of places.
However, the challenges of going to work are sometimes harder when your mind wanders elsewhere, like thinking of your family.
Certain individuals work away from home to support their families, driven by the limited job opportunities in their respective countries. Their goal is to provide a better life for their loved ones.
For these dedicated individuals, the decision to work in a foreign country is deeply personal and sometimes challenging.
They go on this journey to provide financial stability and improve the lives for their families back home.
The sacrifices they make extend beyond the physical distance that separates them from their loved ones.
They also endure the emotional toll of missing important milestones, celebrations, and the everyday moments that make up family life.
This is James’ exact situation at the moment. He works as a security guard at a college in Rhode Island.
James hasn’t seen his family, including his son, in Nigeria in over a decade.
This semester, Providence College students became friends with James at the institution’s Raymond Hall.
After getting to know him, the students discovered James’s long separation from his family.
To help him reunite, they decided to raise funds through a GoFundMe page to cover James’ travel expenses to visit Nigeria.
The students detailed James’s admirable qualities, highlighting his hardworking attitude and kind demeanor.
“For those of you that don’t know James, he truly is one of the nicest people you will ever meet,” they wrote.
“He greets everybody with a smile and always welcomes conversations no matter what time of the night you run into him… He does not know how much we appreciate him, and we hope this shows him how much he means to our community,” the post added.
Freshman student Brandon Reichert, who helped organize the GoFundMe, shared his thoughts on James: “He’s just the kindest soul anyone has ever met in this building. He means so much to us; he’s so important. It was amazing how fast everyone connected and could put it together for him.”
Within 24 hours of setting up the GoFundMe, the college students raised $3,000.
On March 6, the students presented the collected money to James, capturing the touching moment in a photo.
The security guard appeared shocked as he held his hands up to his mouth.
In a later update on GoFundMe, the students included a photo of themselves presenting the money to the guard as he sat behind his desk.
James appeared shocked as he held his hands up to his mouth.
“Tonight, we were able to gift James enough money to travel to Nigeria to visit his family in June!” Reichert wrote.
“I’d like to thank everyone who donated, as you can see what an impact you made on such an incredible man.”
“I mean, I was fighting back tears,” Sophomore Resident Advisor Daniel Singh, who was present when the students presented the funds, told WJAR about the moment.
“What is so special is the impact James has had on all of us,” Dean of Students Steven Sears told ABC 6.
“His reaction and the authenticity not only for this group and the students involved with him and the care, and what he said at the end is that he is praying for them, he is praying for their success, and that God watches over them and that he does that every day,” he said.
Reichert shared that any further donations on the GoFundMe would be given to James at the end of the school year to fund further trips to Nigeria in the future.
As of writing, the GoFundMe has raised over $28,365.
Watch the heartwarming moments of James, the Nigerian security guard and the Providence College students below:
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