During the late 1980s, I was embarking on a low-cost journey to Europe with a friend. Since my travel mate was considering starting a postgraduate program in NYC, we had booked a fortnight visit there en route to London.
We arrived at the graduate housing, a sizeable multi-story edifice on the UWS called International House. After dropping our bags, we went directly to the dining hall, where we got some food, found a table, and started talking to people eating there.
Adjacent to my seat was an gentleman from Iraq pursuing an engineering degree at Columbia University. He wanted to know what I did for a living, and I told him that I had just graduated with a degree in science and had been conducting research using an electron microscope.
He pointed out that there was an microscopy facility at the university – right next door to the engineering department, which was the reason he was familiar with it. He suggested that I ought to seek a role with them. I chuckled at the suggestion, saying that I was heading off to Europe and, more critically, I did not possess a US visa.
The following day I toured the city, going back to the cafeteria that night. The man from Iraq came up to me and told me that he had arranged an interview for me with the director of the microscopy lab at Columbia. Since he had taken the effort, I went to the meeting – but immediately explained to my prospective employer that I was without a work permit, so I was probably wasting her time.
As is common in NYC – a city where anything feels possible – she declared: “We'll handle it. When can you start?” I never got on that flight to London.
I worked there for a trio of years. An advantage of the role was that I got no-cost classes at Columbia, and I seized the chance to complete a master’s of international affairs.
I never saw that student again and I don’t even know his name, but his selfless gesture transformed my future in multiple respects. I didn't possess the bravery or self-assurance to contact anyone at an prestigious college and request employment. Moreover, I had always wanted to take classes in another country, 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 role in Europe where I encountered my beautiful French husband, with whom I am raising a family of four kids. It was a total sliding doors moment. That benevolent individual changed my trajectory in life, and I’m eternally thankful.
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