During the closing decade of the 80s, I was beginning a budget travel adventure to Europe with a friend. Because my friend was considering enrolling in graduate studies in the Big Apple, we had arranged a fortnight visit there en route to London.
We got to the graduate housing, a sizeable 10-storey building on the Upper West Side called International House. Once we unpacked, we made our way to the dining hall, where we picked up meals, took a seat, and engaged in conversation with fellow residents.
Adjacent to my seat was an gentleman from Iraq enrolled in an engineering program at Columbia University. He inquired what I did for a living, and I explained that I had newly finished with a scientific background and had been conducting research with electron microscopy.
He mentioned that there was an microscopy facility at Columbia University – right next door to the engineering faculty, which was how he knew about it. He recommended that I ought to seek a role with them. I laughed it off, telling him that I was soon departing to Europe and, more critically, I lacked a US visa.
The next day I went out exploring, going back to the cafeteria that after dark. The Iraqi student walked over to me and informed me that he had set up a meeting for me with the director of the microscopy lab at Columbia. Since he had taken the effort, I went to the meeting – but straight off told my interviewer that I lacked the necessary visa, so I was likely not a suitable candidate.
As is common in NYC – a place where anything feels possible – she responded: “We can make that happen. When can you start?” I didn't board the aircraft to London.
I worked there for 36 months. A perk of the job was that I got free tuition at Columbia, and I seized the chance to earn a postgrad program in international relations.
I never saw that student again and I can't recall his name, but his incredible act of kindness transformed my future in multiple respects. I would never have had the bravery or self-belief to contact anyone at an elite institution and request employment. Moreover, I had always wanted to study abroad, but wouldn't have been able to pay for it without that tuition waiver.
Perhaps most importantly, 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 currently share four amazing children. It was a total sliding doors moment. That benevolent individual changed my trajectory in life, and I’m always appreciative.
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