In the closing decade of the 80s, I was embarking on a budget travel adventure to Europe with a companion. Because my companion was exploring starting a postgraduate program in NYC, we had arranged a 14-day stopover there on the way to London.
We arrived at the postgrad residence, a big ten-floor structure on the Manhattan's Upper West Side called International House. After dropping our bags, we went directly to the cafeteria, where we picked up meals, sat down, and started talking to people eating there.
Sitting next to me was an individual of Iraqi origin enrolled in an engineering program at a prestigious New York university. He wanted to know what I did, and I shared that I had newly finished with a science degree and had been working on studies using an electron microscope.
He pointed out that there was an microscopy facility at Columbia University – adjacent to the engineering faculty, which was the reason he was familiar with it. He recommended that I should apply for a role with them. I dismissed the idea, saying that I was heading off to Europe and, more critically, I lacked a US visa.
The next day I ventured out, returning to the canteen that evening. The man from Iraq walked over to me and informed me that he had arranged an interview for me with the head of the electron microscope unit at Columbia. Since he had gone to the trouble, I attended the interview – but straight off told my prospective employer that I lacked the necessary visa, so I was unable to accept the role.
Reflecting the city's spirit – a metropolis where opportunities abound – she declared: “We'll handle it. When can you start?” I missed my plane to London.
I held that position for three years. A perk of the job was that I was granted complimentary education at Columbia, and I took advantage to complete a master’s of international affairs.
I never saw that student again and I don’t even know his full name, but his selfless gesture transformed my future in multiple respects. I would never have had the courage or nerve to reach out at an prestigious college and request employment. And, I had always wanted to pursue education overseas, but wouldn't have been able to pay for it without that tuition waiver.
Perhaps most importantly, that gig at Columbia resulted in a job in Zurich where I met my wonderful partner, with whom I now have four wonderful sons and daughters. This was a pivotal life event. That helpful person set me on a different course in life, and I’m eternally thankful.
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