In the late 1980s, I was beginning a budget travel adventure to the European continent with a travel partner. Because my travel mate was considering starting a postgraduate program in the Big Apple, we had planned a 14-day stopover there on the way to London.
We arrived at the graduate housing, a large multi-story edifice on the Manhattan's Upper West Side named International House. Once we unpacked, we went directly to the canteen, where we picked up meals, found a table, and began chatting with other diners.
Adjacent to my seat was an Iraqi man studying engineering at an Ivy League institution. He inquired what I did, and I explained that I had newly finished with a scientific background and had been performing experiments using an electron microscope.
He pointed out that there was an electron microscope unit at the institution – close to the engineering department, which was how he knew about it. He recommended that I ought to seek a role with them. I laughed it off, saying that I was about to fly to Europe and, even more importantly, I lacked a US visa.
The following day I went out exploring, coming back to the dining hall that after dark. The Iraqi student walked over to me and let me know that he had organized a discussion for me with the director of the microscopy lab at Columbia. Since he had made the arrangement, I attended the interview – but straight off explained to my interviewer that I lacked the necessary visa, so I was probably wasting her time.
In typical New York fashion – a place where everything seems achievable – she responded: “We'll handle it. How soon can you begin?” I didn't board the aircraft to London.
I was employed there for a trio of years. A perk of the job was that I also received complimentary education at Columbia, and I seized the chance to finish a master’s of international affairs.
We didn't cross paths after that and I don’t even know his identity, but his selfless gesture changed my life in so many ways. I would never have had the confidence or nerve to reach out at an elite institution and ask for a job. Additionally, I had always wanted to pursue education overseas, but lacked the financial means without that tuition waiver.
What's more, that gig at Columbia paved the way for a position in Switzerland where I met my beautiful French husband, with whom I am raising four amazing children. That encounter altered everything. That helpful person set me on a different course in life, and I’m always appreciative.
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