In the final years of the 1980s, I set out on a low-cost journey to Europe with a friend. Because my friend was considering starting a postgraduate program in the Big Apple, we had planned a fortnight visit there before heading to London.
We reached the student accommodation, a big ten-floor structure on the UWS known as International House. Once we unpacked, we went directly to the dining hall, where we picked up meals, found a table, and engaged in conversation with other diners.
Beside me was an Iraqi man studying engineering at a prestigious New York university. He inquired what I did for a living, and I told him that I had just graduated with a science degree and had been conducting research involving microscopic analysis.
He noted that there was an microscopy facility at the university – close to the engineering department, which was the reason he was familiar with it. He proposed that I ought to seek a position with them. I laughed it off, telling him that I was heading off to Europe and, even more importantly, I lacked a US visa.
The next day I toured the city, going back to the cafeteria that evening. The Iraqi student came up to me and let me know that he had organized a discussion for me with the director of the microscopy lab at Columbia. Because he had made the arrangement, I attended the interview – but immediately told my host that I was without a work permit, so I was likely not a suitable candidate.
In typical New York fashion – 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 three years. One of the benefits was that I got free tuition at Columbia, and I used the opportunity to earn a graduate degree in global studies.
We didn't cross paths after that and I don’t even know his identity, but his incredible act of kindness changed my life in so many ways. I would never have had the bravery or self-belief to contact anyone at an elite institution and seek a position. And, I had long dreamed to take classes in another country, but wouldn't have been able to pay for it without that educational benefit.
Perhaps most importantly, that role at the university paved the way for a job in Zurich where I encountered my handsome spouse from France, with whom I currently share four wonderful sons and daughters. That encounter altered everything. That benevolent individual changed my trajectory in life, and I’m eternally thankful.
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