In the closing decade of the 80s, I set out on a backpacking trip to Europe with a travel partner. Since my companion was exploring enrolling in graduate studies in NYC, we had planned a 14-day stopover there en route to London.
We got to the graduate housing, a large 10-storey building on the Manhattan's Upper West Side called International House. Setting down our luggage, we made our way to the cafeteria, where we picked up meals, found a table, and started talking to other diners.
Beside me was an individual of Iraqi origin enrolled in an engineering program at a prestigious New York university. He inquired what I did for a living, and I shared that I had recently completed my studies with a science degree and had been performing experiments with electron microscopy.
He mentioned that there was an research lab at the university – close to the engineering department, which was the reason he was familiar with it. He recommended that I should apply for a role with them. I laughed it off, explaining that I was heading off to Europe and, additionally, I lacked a US visa.
A day later I toured the city, returning to the canteen that evening. The Iraqi student approached me and let me know that he had arranged an interview for me with the head of the electron microscope unit at Columbia. Given that he had taken the effort, I attended the interview – but immediately told my prospective employer that I didn’t have a visa, so I was probably wasting her time.
Reflecting the city's spirit – a place where opportunities abound – she said: “We can make that happen. When can you start?” I didn't board the aircraft to London.
I held that position for a trio of years. A perk of the job was that I got no-cost classes at Columbia, and I took advantage to complete a postgrad program in international relations.
I lost touch with him and I am unaware of his identity, but his remarkable generosity altered my destiny in numerous aspects. I would never have had the bravery or self-belief to approach someone at an prestigious college and seek a position. Moreover, I had consistently hoped to study abroad, but wouldn't have been able to pay for it without that free tuition.
Perhaps most importantly, that role at the university resulted in a job in Zurich where I got to know my handsome spouse from France, with whom I now have four wonderful sons and daughters. That encounter altered everything. That kind stranger set me on a different course in life, and I’m forever grateful.
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