During the final years of the 1980s, I was embarking on a backpacking trip to the European continent with a companion. Because my friend was considering enrolling in graduate studies in the Big Apple, we had planned a 14-day stopover there on the way to London.
We got to the postgrad residence, a large 10-storey building on the Upper West Side called International House. Setting down our luggage, we made our way to the cafeteria, where we got some food, sat down, and engaged in conversation with people eating there.
Beside me was an individual of Iraqi origin studying engineering at a prestigious New York university. He wanted to know what I did, and I explained that I had just graduated with a degree in science and had been performing experiments using an electron microscope.
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 proposed that I consider applying for a position with them. I chuckled at the suggestion, saying that I was about to fly to Europe and, additionally, I lacked a US visa.
The next day I toured the city, returning to the canteen that night. The Iraqi student came up to me and let me know that he had set up a meeting for me with the director of the microscopy lab at Columbia. Given that he had made the arrangement, I attended the interview – but immediately explained to my prospective employer that I didn’t have a visa, so I was unable to accept the role.
As is common in NYC – a place where everything seems achievable – she said: “We'll handle it. When can you start?” I didn't board the aircraft to London.
I was employed there for 36 months. A perk of the job was that I was granted no-cost classes at Columbia, and I used the opportunity to earn a postgrad program in international relations.
We didn't cross paths after that and I am unaware of his full name, but his remarkable generosity transformed my future in multiple respects. I would never have had the bravery or self-belief to approach someone at an Ivy League university and request employment. Moreover, I had consistently hoped to pursue education overseas, but lacked the financial means without that free tuition.
Critically, that role at the university resulted in a position in Switzerland where I got to know my beautiful French husband, with whom I now have a family of four kids. That encounter altered everything. That benevolent individual set me on a different course in life, and I’m forever grateful.
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