In the late 1980s, I set out on a budget travel adventure to Europe with a companion. Since my travel mate was exploring pursuing a master’s degree in the Big Apple, we had booked a fortnight visit there en route to London.
We reached the postgrad residence, a big multi-story edifice on the UWS named International House. Once we unpacked, we made our way to the dining hall, where we grabbed food, sat down, and started talking to people eating there.
Sitting next to me was an Iraqi man pursuing an engineering degree at Columbia University. He asked me what I did for a living, and I explained that I had newly finished with a scientific background and had been performing experiments with electron microscopy.
He mentioned that there was an microscopy facility at the institution – right next door to the engineering faculty, which was how he knew about it. He suggested that I consider applying for a role with them. I laughed it off, explaining that I was soon departing to Europe and, more critically, I lacked a US visa.
The following day I went out exploring, going back to the cafeteria that evening. The Iraqi student approached me and informed me that he had arranged an interview for me with the head of the electron microscope unit at Columbia. Since he had gone to the trouble, I attended the interview – but right away informed my prospective employer that I lacked the necessary visa, so I was probably wasting her time.
In typical New York fashion – a city where everything seems achievable – she responded: “We'll handle it. When can you start?” I missed my plane to London.
I was employed there for three years. One of the benefits was that I was granted free tuition at Columbia, and I seized the chance to complete a postgrad program in international relations.
I lost touch with him and I don’t even know his name, but his selfless gesture altered my destiny in multiple respects. I would never have had the confidence or self-belief to contact anyone at an Ivy League university and seek a position. And, I had consistently hoped to study abroad, but could never have afforded it without that tuition waiver.
Perhaps most importantly, that job in New York resulted in a position in Switzerland where I got to know my handsome spouse from France, with whom I am raising four wonderful sons and daughters. That encounter altered everything. That kind stranger redirected my path in life, and I’m always appreciative.
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