In the final years of the 1980s, I was embarking on a low-cost journey to Europe with a companion. Because my friend was interested in pursuing a master’s degree in New York, we had arranged a 14-day stopover there before heading to London.
We got to the student accommodation, a sizeable ten-floor structure on the UWS known as International House. Once we unpacked, we headed straight to the canteen, where we grabbed food, found a table, and started talking to fellow residents.
Adjacent to my seat was an gentleman from Iraq pursuing an engineering degree at a prestigious New York university. He asked me what I did, and I shared that I had recently completed my studies with a degree in science and had been conducting research with electron microscopy.
He noted that there was an electron microscope unit at the university – adjacent to the engineering department, which was how he knew about it. He recommended that I ought to seek a role with them. I dismissed the idea, explaining that I was about to fly to Europe and, even more importantly, I lacked a US visa.
The following day I toured the city, returning to the canteen that night. The engineering student came up to me and let me know that he had arranged an interview for me with the director of the microscopy lab at Columbia. Because he had taken the effort, I showed up for the discussion – but right away explained to my host that I lacked the necessary visa, so I was probably wasting her time.
In typical New York fashion – a place where opportunities abound – she said: “We can make that happen. What's your start date?” I missed my plane to London.
I was employed there for 36 months. One of the benefits was that I was granted no-cost classes at Columbia, and I took advantage to complete a master’s of international affairs.
I lost touch with him and I don’t even know his full name, but his remarkable generosity altered my destiny in multiple respects. I would never have had the confidence or nerve to reach out at an Ivy League university and request employment. Additionally, I had always wanted to pursue education overseas, but wouldn't have been able to pay for it without that tuition waiver.
Perhaps most importantly, that job in New York resulted in a job in Zurich where I met my beautiful French husband, with whom I now have four wonderful sons and daughters. That encounter altered everything. That helpful person redirected my path in life, and I’m forever grateful.
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