Dom was like the younger brother I never had, and thanks to CNN, we crossed paths.
We were teammates in Hong Kong and the only two social producers in the bureau. The year was 2017, the US had a new president, North Korea was conducting a number of missile tests, Facebook was experimenting with video ads, and well, we were just trying to figure it all out.
I think Dom and I had a great balance. He was more creative with copy when the story allowed and I was more cautious when they tended to be sensitive. He had more energy to try new things, while I thought about how we could do it at scale without exhausting ourselves.
But beyond work, one of Dom's favorite topics was his family, and it was always a joy to hear him talk about them. They were all in the UK and like me, Dom was the youngest, so I related to all the things you miss when you're away from family. A few months in, I felt like I knew them personally just from Dom's stories.
A few weeks after I tendered my resignation, Dom was hoping to go back to the UK, but was worried about leaving the bureau since I'd be leaving in a few months too. I told him to do what's right by his family – it's what I'd do too.
On our last day together in the Hong Kong bureau, he came in with flowers and the nicest card. He would send me flowers again, years later, when Marc passed, with words that helped me get through that day.
The last coverage we ever did together was about North Korea in early 2018. What a fitting end to our chapter as colleagues, and an odd, but great, start to a lifetime of friendship.