In the final years of the 1980s, I set out on a backpacking trip to the European continent with a travel partner. Since my companion was interested in enrolling in graduate studies in NYC, we had arranged a 14-day stopover there en route to London.
We reached the student accommodation, a large ten-floor structure on the Manhattan's Upper West Side called International House. Once we unpacked, we made our way to the dining hall, where we got some food, took a seat, and engaged in conversation with other diners.
Sitting next to me was an Iraqi man enrolled in an engineering program at an Ivy League institution. He wanted to know what I did for a living, and I told him that I had newly finished with a science degree and had been conducting research with electron microscopy.
He pointed out that there was an research lab at the institution – close to the engineering faculty, which was why he was aware of it. He recommended that I should apply for a position with them. I dismissed the idea, explaining that I was heading off to Europe and, more critically, I didn’t have a US visa.
A day later I toured the city, returning to the canteen that after dark. The man from Iraq came up to me and informed me that he had organized a discussion for me with the head of the electron microscope unit at Columbia. Because he had gone to the trouble, I attended the interview – but immediately informed my interviewer that I didn’t have a visa, so I was likely not a suitable candidate.
In typical New York fashion – a city where opportunities abound – she declared: “We can make that happen. When can you start?” I didn't board the aircraft to London.
I held that position for 36 months. A perk of the job was that I also received no-cost classes at Columbia, and I took advantage to finish a graduate degree in global studies.
I never saw that student again and I am unaware of his full name, but his remarkable generosity changed my life in numerous aspects. I lacked the courage or nerve to approach someone at an Ivy League university and ask for a job. Additionally, I had always wanted to study abroad, but could never have afforded it without that educational benefit.
Critically, that role at the university led me to a position in Switzerland where I encountered my wonderful partner, with whom I now have four wonderful sons and daughters. This was a pivotal life event. That helpful person redirected my path in life, and I’m forever grateful.
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