In the final years of the 1980s, I was embarking on a backpacking trip to Europe with a travel partner. Since my companion was considering pursuing a master’s degree in the Big Apple, we had booked a 14-day stopover there en route to London.
We got to the postgrad residence, a large ten-floor structure on the Manhattan's Upper West Side named International House. After dropping our bags, we headed straight to the dining hall, where we got some food, found a table, and started talking to other diners.
Beside me was an Iraqi man enrolled in an engineering program at Columbia University. He inquired what I my profession was, and I shared that I had just graduated with a scientific background and had been performing experiments with electron microscopy.
He pointed out that there was an electron microscope unit at the university – close to the school of engineering, which was why he was aware of it. He proposed that I consider applying for a job with them. I chuckled at the suggestion, telling him that I was soon departing to Europe and, more critically, I didn’t have a US visa.
The next day I ventured out, coming back to the dining hall that evening. The man from Iraq 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 informed my prospective employer that I lacked the necessary visa, so I was probably wasting her time.
Reflecting the city's spirit – a place where anything feels possible – she declared: “We'll handle it. When can you start?” I missed my plane to London.
I worked there for 36 months. An advantage of the role was that I also received no-cost classes at Columbia, and I used the opportunity to complete a postgrad program in international relations.
I lost touch with him and I don’t even know his full name, but his remarkable generosity altered my destiny in so many ways. I lacked the confidence or self-belief to contact anyone at an prestigious college and ask for a job. And, I had consistently hoped to take classes in another country, but could never have afforded it without that free tuition.
What's more, that role at the university resulted in a role in Europe where I met my beautiful French husband, with whom I am raising four amazing children. This was a pivotal life event. That helpful person changed my trajectory in life, and I’m forever grateful.
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