IVHAN LUIS CARPIO BAUTISTA
Things Were Going So Well
Tuesday was Ivhan Luís Carpio Bautista's day off at Windows on the World.
It was also his birthday. But with an extended family back in Peru
depending on his paycheck, Mr. Carpio, 24, did not hesitate when a co-worker
called that Monday night asking if he would cover a shift. "He worked all
the overtime he could," said a cousin, Ríta Tatiana Palacio. "Too many
people needed the money, including a niece whose school he paid for."
In the two years since arriving in New York speaking only Spanish, Mr.
Carpio had made enviable strides. His English was nearly fluent, he had
found the perfect job and last month had moved into his own place, having
previously shared an apartment with his cousin in Queens. The day before
the attack on the twin towers, he learned that he had been accepted to John
Jay College of Criminal Justice. It was a day of triumph, as he had been
uncertain whether the school would accept credits from his two-and-a-half
years of law school in Peru. "He was so excited, so happy," Ms. Palacio said.
"I remember him saying how he was so lucky, that everything was going to be
so good from now on."
So he subbed in for a co-worker that day, his 24th birthday, Sept. 11, 2001.