In the final years of the 1980s, I was beginning a backpacking trip to Europe with a friend. Because my friend was exploring starting a postgraduate program in New York, we had booked a two-week stay there before heading to London.
We reached the graduate housing, a large 10-storey building on the Manhattan's Upper West Side named International House. After dropping our bags, we went directly to the dining hall, where we grabbed food, sat down, and engaged in conversation with people eating there.
Adjacent to my seat was an individual of Iraqi origin enrolled in an engineering program at Columbia University. He wanted to know what I did, and I explained that I had just graduated with a science degree and had been working on studies with electron microscopy.
He mentioned that there was an electron microscope unit at the institution – right next door to the engineering department, which was the reason he was familiar with it. He proposed that I consider applying for a role with them. I dismissed the idea, saying that I was soon departing to Europe and, even more importantly, I lacked a US visa.
The next day I went out exploring, coming back to the dining hall that after dark. The Iraqi student approached me and told me that he had organized a discussion for me with the head of the electron microscope unit at Columbia. Because he had made the arrangement, I showed up for the discussion – but right away informed my host that I didn’t have a visa, so I was likely not a suitable candidate.
Reflecting the city's spirit – 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 three years. A perk of the job was that I got free tuition at Columbia, and I took advantage to complete a graduate degree in global studies.
I lost touch with him and I am unaware of his full name, but his selfless gesture transformed my future in multiple respects. I didn't possess the confidence or self-belief to approach someone at an elite institution and seek a position. And, I had consistently hoped to study abroad, but wouldn't have been able to pay for it without that free tuition.
Critically, that role at the university paved the way for a job in Zurich where I encountered my handsome spouse from France, with whom I currently share four wonderful sons and daughters. That encounter altered everything. That benevolent individual changed my trajectory in life, and I’m eternally thankful.
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