During the late 1980s, I was beginning a budget travel adventure to Europe with a friend. Since my companion was considering enrolling in graduate studies in New York, we had arranged a two-week stay there en route to London.
We reached the student accommodation, a sizeable 10-storey building on the UWS known as International House. After dropping our bags, we went directly to the canteen, where we picked up meals, took a seat, and started talking to fellow residents.
Beside me was an gentleman from Iraq enrolled in an engineering program at Columbia University. He asked me what I did, and I told him that I had recently completed my studies with a science degree and had been performing experiments with electron microscopy.
He noted that there was an electron microscope unit at Columbia University – right next door to the school of engineering, which was why he was aware of it. He suggested that I should apply for a role with them. I chuckled at the suggestion, saying that I was heading off to Europe and, more critically, I lacked a US visa.
The following day I toured the city, returning to the canteen that night. The engineering student approached me and told me that he had arranged an interview for me with the head of the electron microscope unit at Columbia. Given that he had gone to the trouble, I attended the interview – but immediately explained to my host that I was without a work permit, so I was unable to accept the role.
In typical New York fashion – a metropolis where everything seems achievable – she said: “We'll handle it. What's your start date?” I didn't board the aircraft to London.
I worked there for three years. A perk of the job was that I got no-cost classes at Columbia, and I seized the chance to earn a postgrad program in international relations.
I never saw that student again and I am unaware of his full name, but his incredible act of kindness transformed my future in multiple respects. I would never have had the bravery or nerve to reach out at an elite institution and seek a position. And, I had long dreamed to pursue education overseas, but lacked the financial means without that educational benefit.
What's more, that role at the university paved the way for a role in Europe where I encountered my beautiful French husband, with whom I currently share four wonderful sons and daughters. This was a pivotal life event. That helpful person changed my trajectory in life, and I’m eternally thankful.
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