In the final years of the 1980s, I set out on a backpacking trip to Europe with a companion. Since my companion was considering enrolling in graduate studies in New York, we had booked a two-week stay there before heading to London.
We got to the graduate housing, a large multi-story edifice on the Manhattan's Upper West Side known as International House. After dropping our bags, we went directly to the dining hall, where we picked up meals, found a table, and began chatting with people eating there.
Adjacent to my seat was an individual of Iraqi origin pursuing an engineering degree at an Ivy League institution. He inquired what I my profession was, and I shared that I had just graduated with a degree in science and had been working on studies using an electron microscope.
He mentioned that there was an electron microscope unit at the institution – close to the engineering faculty, which was why he was aware of it. He recommended that I ought to seek a role with them. I laughed it off, telling him that I was heading off to Europe and, even more importantly, I didn’t have a US visa.
The next day I ventured out, returning to the canteen that evening. The man from Iraq walked over to me and told me that he had arranged an interview for me with the director of the microscopy lab at Columbia. Given that he had made the arrangement, I showed up for the discussion – but right away informed my host that I lacked the necessary visa, so I was unable to accept the role.
Reflecting the city's spirit – a place where everything seems achievable – she declared: “We can make that happen. How soon can you begin?” I never got on that flight to London.
I held that position for 36 months. An advantage of the role was that I got no-cost classes at Columbia, and I used the opportunity to finish a master’s of international affairs.
I never saw that student again and I don’t even know his identity, but his remarkable generosity changed my life in multiple respects. I would never have had the confidence or self-belief to approach someone at an Ivy League university and ask for a job. Additionally, I had always wanted to study abroad, but lacked the financial means without that educational benefit.
Perhaps most importantly, that job in New York paved the way for a position in Switzerland where I got to know my handsome spouse from France, with whom I am raising a family of four kids. That encounter altered everything. That benevolent individual changed my trajectory in life, and I’m eternally thankful.
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