PAGE 96
THE WARREN-WATCHUNG CONNECTION
NOVEMBER 2013
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The following story was told to me
by a former colleague, Chloe.
Chloe and her husband, Rich, had
just completed a visit with some long-
time friends in Alabama. There were
no direct flights back home to the
Boston area, so they routed themselves
through New York. Due to bad weath-
er, the flight to New York was can-
celled, so they were rerouted through
Chicago. They landed in Chicago and
upon starting towards the gate for the
final leg of their trip they were
informed, somewhat as expected, of a
departure delay to Boston.
Since Rich traveled a lot on business
they were able to access one of the air-
line lounges where they were able to
find a table despite the crowded condi-
tions caused by mounting weather
delays across the East Coast.
They set-up their personal comput-
ers and began catching up on emails.
Sometime later, out of the corner of
her eye, Chloe thought she spotted
Tom Brokaw, the television journalist,
who co-anchored the
Today Show
for
five years and then anchored NBC
Nightly News
for twenty-two years. As
he walked across the lounge, Chloe
called Rich’s attention to him and Rich
agreed that if it wasn’t Tom Brokaw, it
was a dead ringer for him.
Not long after that, as their revised
departure time approached, Chloe and
Rich began packing up their PC’s and
finishing their drinks. A man
approached them and asked if they
were leaving. Chloe said, “The table is
all yours,” then realized who might be
standing over them, “Are you Tom
Brokaw?” He was indeed and thanked
them for the space.
As Chloe and Rich walked away,
Chloe suggested to Rich that they get
some advice from Brokaw for their son,
who at that time was attending college
majoring in journalism. Rich was a bit
hesitant. He didn’t want to bother
Brokaw but after all they did give up
their table to him and Chloe convinced
him they shouldn’t miss the opportunity.
Brokaw was happy to help and lis-
tened as Chloe and Rich provided
some background on their son. The
general advice Brokaw gave them
emphasized the importance of a well
rounded education and studying areas
of one’s interest and passion. In his
opinion that was more important than
receiving a diploma from a journalism
school, even if one aspired to become
a journalist.
The conversation ended. Chloe and
Rich began walking to their gate.
Chloe’s cell phone rang. It was their
son calling from college. He had some
news for them. He called to tell them
that he was changing his major.
Based on the interaction with
Brokaw not more than fifteen minutes
before, Chloe and Rich were fine with
their son’s decision. They admitted to
themselves that had they not been
rerouted through Chicago, then not
had a chance meeting with Tom
Brokaw they would have been
extremely upset with their son’s deci-
sion, which would have caused a lot of
stress and debate. A random connec-
tion, at just the right moment, had
helped their family move forward.
A WELL KNOWN NEWSCASTER
HELPS A FAMILY SERENDIPITOUSLY
By: Dan Rosenberg
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