Dublin to NYC

I graduated from UCD in 1992, a time when Ireland was still in the shadow of economic stagnation. The Celtic Tiger was nowhere in sight yet, and for many of us, opportunity felt just out of reach. Like so many others, I applied for the Morrison Visa, and I was one of the lucky ones.

I had never even been to the United States before. I remember the day I left like it was yesterday, carrying my chest x-ray to U.S. immigration at Shannon Airport. The old Shannon stopover was still in place then. I’ll never forget seeing all the garbage cans overflowing with discarded x-ray envelopes after people had gone through immigration, a strange but unforgettable symbol of this new chapter so many of us were about to begin.

I landed first in Boston, where I had some family, and later found my way to New York. It was a time before mobile phones, email, or social media, which made the distance from home all the more intense. The heartbreak of homesickness was real. Still, I knew this was a unique opportunity, and I was determined to make the most of it.

New York became home. It was where I met and married my wife, and where our son was born. I eventually became a U.S. citizen, one of the proudest moments of my life.

“The Morrison Visa gave me so much more than a new country, it gave me a future, a family, and the freedom to build a life I never could have imagined when I was first packing my bags in Dublin.”

A couple of years ago, my family and I moved back to Dublin. But my gratitude for the Morrison Visa has never faded. That program didn’t just change my life, it created it.

It was an incredible opportunity for young Irish people at a time when we desperately needed one. And it wasn’t just good for us, it was good for America. The U.S. welcomed a generation of talented, ambitious young immigrants who, in turn, contributed to their communities, their companies, and to the country as a whole.