In the closing decade of the 80s, I was embarking on a budget travel adventure to the European continent with a companion. Because my companion was considering starting a postgraduate program in the Big Apple, we had arranged a fortnight visit there on the way to London.
We reached the graduate housing, a large multi-story edifice on the UWS called International House. Setting down our luggage, we made our way to the cafeteria, where we got some food, took a seat, and started talking to fellow residents.
Adjacent to my seat was an gentleman from Iraq pursuing an engineering degree at Columbia University. He asked me what I my profession was, and I told him that I had newly finished with a science degree and had been working on studies using an electron microscope.
He noted that there was an microscopy facility at Columbia University – close to the engineering faculty, which was why he was aware of it. He suggested that I consider applying for a position with them. I laughed it off, telling him that I was about to fly to Europe and, additionally, I didn’t have a US visa.
A day later I ventured out, coming back to the dining hall that evening. The engineering student walked over to me and informed me that he had arranged an interview for me with the director of the microscopy lab at Columbia. Since he had taken the effort, I attended the interview – but right away explained to my prospective employer that I was without a work permit, so I was probably wasting her time.
In typical New York fashion – a city where opportunities abound – she responded: “That can be arranged. What's your start date?” I never got on that flight to London.
I worked there for 36 months. One of the benefits was that I was granted no-cost classes at Columbia, and I used the opportunity to complete a master’s of international affairs.
We didn't cross paths after that and I am unaware of his identity, but his remarkable generosity transformed my future in numerous aspects. I would never have had the confidence or nerve to contact anyone at an prestigious college and ask for a job. Additionally, I had consistently hoped to study abroad, but lacked the financial means without that educational benefit.
What's more, that job in New York paved the way for a role in Europe where I got to know my handsome spouse from France, with whom I now have a family of four kids. That encounter altered everything. That kind stranger set me on a different course in life, and I’m forever grateful.
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