In the final years of the 1980s, I was embarking on a backpacking trip to the European continent with a companion. Since my travel mate was considering starting a postgraduate program in the Big Apple, we had planned a fortnight visit there en route to London.
We got to the graduate housing, a sizeable ten-floor structure on the Upper West Side named International House. Once we unpacked, we went directly to the dining hall, where we grabbed food, took a seat, and started talking to fellow residents.
Beside me was an gentleman from Iraq studying engineering at Columbia University. He inquired what I did for a living, and I told him that I had just graduated with a science degree and had been working on studies with electron microscopy.
He mentioned that there was an microscopy facility at Columbia University – right next door to the engineering faculty, which was why he was aware of it. He recommended that I ought to seek a position with them. I chuckled at the suggestion, saying that I was soon departing to Europe and, more critically, I lacked a US visa.
The next day I toured the city, going back to the cafeteria that after dark. The man from Iraq walked over to me and told me that he had arranged an interview for me with the head of the electron microscope unit at Columbia. Because he had gone to the trouble, I attended the interview – but straight off told my interviewer that I was without a work permit, so I was likely not a suitable candidate.
As is common in NYC – a city where anything feels possible – she declared: “We can make that happen. 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 complimentary education at Columbia, and I used the opportunity to finish a postgrad program in international relations.
I never saw that student again and I don’t even know his identity, but his incredible act of kindness altered my destiny in so many ways. I didn't possess the bravery or nerve to approach someone at an elite institution and request employment. And, I had consistently hoped to take classes in another country, but wouldn't have been able to pay for it without that free tuition.
What's more, that gig at Columbia led me to a role in Europe where I met my handsome spouse from France, with whom I am raising four wonderful sons and daughters. It was a total sliding doors moment. That benevolent individual set me on a different course in life, and I’m forever grateful.
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