Space Cow at George Bush Intercontinental Airport (IAH photo)
Air travel can be stressful no matter how much planning you do in advance.
Travelers often fear navigating the TSA checkpoint might be the most challenging event of the entire trip.
One traveler, departing from Houston’s George Bush Intercontinental Airport (IAH), can certainly attest to prior planning evaporating at the checkpoint. Thankfully, Supervisory TSA Officers Adolphus Ross and Meklit Worku were there to help save the day.
As passengers collected their belongings and left the checkpoint, Ross and Worku found a wallet in one of the bins. Recognizing its importance, they immediately assembled a team to locate the owner. They combed the checkpoint CCTV footage to identify the passenger who exited without their wallet.
Upon further inspection, not only did the wallet contain a very large sum of money, but it also held the passenger’s IDs and boarding pass. Knowing their trip could be ruined without the wallet, the IAH team was determined to do whatever it took to find the traveler before it was too late. The boarding pass proved key to narrowing their search.
TSA Officer Nyssakia Cunningham was assigned the task of scanning the nearby gates and food court for the passenger. Having cleared those search avenues, Officer Christian Lara joined Cunningham in redirecting their efforts to the United Airlines lounges in Terminal E, thanks to the information on the boarding pass.
With the assistance of the United lounge agents, Cunningham and Lara were able to contact the father of the female passenger who misplaced her wallet. The passenger was overjoyed to have her property returned to her so swiftly and repeatedly expressed her gratitude and appreciation for the Officers’ hard work, dedication and exemplary service.
“I am so proud of my team,” said Assistant Federal Security Director – Screening Candice Villafone. “This is a true depiction of upholding TSA’s core values of integrity, respect and commitment and gaining trust and respect from the traveling public. These folks really went above and beyond to take care of the passenger. Great job, Team IAH!”
“Excellent work by all involved,” added Lead Transportation Security Manager Steroula “Starr” Gotch.
As for Cunningham, Lara, Ross and Worku, it was all in a day’s work, but it was heartwarming to be recognized for their efforts.
By Michele Robbins, Strategic Communications & Public Affairs