Carolina in his mind

by TALLEY HENNING BROWN

Heading south. Michael John’s new house, in Wake Forest, North Carolina, during its construction. Mr. John’s wife, Martha, has been living there since 2005.

The Monday morning commute can be arduous enough within city limits, but when you’re traveling 411 miles, it’s an epic journey. It’s also a trip that Michael John, assistant director of security, has been making regularly for the last two years. His commute this month, however, will be his last. Mr. John is retiring from Rockefeller University after 31 years to move to Wake Forest, North Carolina, and the new home he has built there with his wife.

Mr. John joined Rockefeller as a maintenance clerk in March 1977, one month after arriving in the United States from his native Trinidad and Tobago. He joined the Office of Security that summer, as a guard on the night shift, and moved to the day shift one year later. He was promoted to sergeant in 1987, lieutenant in 1988, captain in 1990, operations manager in 1999, and in May 2007, Mr. John became assistant director of security.

It was for a security industry conference in Winston-Salem, North Carolina, 20 years ago that Mr. John first visited the state, and he felt instantly at home. “You can blame the Security Office for my move. I love being at Rockefeller, but once they sent me to that conference, I knew that I wanted to live in North Carolina one day,” says Mr. John. Ten years later, he met his future wife, Martha, who grew up in North Carolina and had long harbored the desire to move back there as well. The two married in 2004 and in 2005 chose Wake Forest, a college town outside Raleigh, to build their new home. Since then, Mr. John has traveled by plane at least once a month back to Wake Forest, where his wife moved two and a half years ago. This spring, Mr. John will join her permanently.

“Michael John is an example of the American dream both in personal achievements and service to others,” says John Tooze, vice president for scientific and facility operations. “We all wish him as much success in North Carolina as he has enjoyed in New York.”

Among the proudest accomplishments of his three decades at Rockefeller, Mr. John counts the bachelor’s degree he earned at Lehman College in 2003, majoring in English literature, through Rockefeller’s tuition reimbursement program. He has also been central in preparing for many of the university’s high-profile visitors, working with federal agencies to coordinate security for First Lady Laura Bush, former United States President Jimmy Carter, former First Lady Hillary Clinton and former Vice President Walter Mondale, among others.

“One of the things I appreciate most about Rockefeller is the network between the offices. My office has always had a great working relationship with people in the other offices, and it makes everyone’s jobs much easier,” Mr. John says. “I’m really going to miss the genuine team spirit this university has.”

Mr. John will continue to work in security in North Carolina, and in his off-hours will be busy in his role as homeowner. “I really love to work in the garden, and my wife has a very long ‘honey-do’ list of things to do around the house,” he says. “I’m surprising myself by doing a lot of things I’ve never done before, building this and that around the house, and I’m getting pretty good at it!”

Mr. John’s official last day is March 31, but he’ll be available to help with the transition while Security Director James Rogers begins the search for Mr. John’s replacement. “Rockefeller has been really good to me, over the years, and I would be happy to go the extra mile and make sure everything goes well,” he says.