During the final years of the 1980s, I set out on a backpacking trip to Europe with a travel partner. Since my companion was interested in starting a postgraduate program in NYC, we had booked a 14-day stopover there on the way to London.
We arrived at the graduate housing, a sizeable 10-storey building on the Upper West Side named International House. After dropping our bags, we headed straight to the dining hall, where we got some food, took a seat, and began chatting with other diners.
Adjacent to my seat was an gentleman from Iraq enrolled in an engineering program at a prestigious New York university. He asked me what I did, and I shared that I had newly finished with a degree in science and had been working on studies with electron microscopy.
He mentioned that there was an microscopy facility at Columbia 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 job with them. I laughed it off, telling him that I was about to fly to Europe and, even more importantly, I didn’t have a US visa.
The following day I went out exploring, returning to the canteen that night. The Iraqi student came up to me and let me know that he had set up a meeting for me with the director of the microscopy lab at Columbia. Given that he had gone to the trouble, I went to the meeting – but right away told my prospective employer that I lacked the necessary visa, so I was likely not a suitable candidate.
Reflecting the city's spirit – a place where everything seems achievable – she responded: “We'll handle it. What's your start date?” I missed my plane to London.
I was employed there for three years. A perk of the job was that I was granted complimentary education at Columbia, and I used the opportunity to complete a graduate degree in global studies.
I never saw that student again and I can't recall his identity, but his remarkable generosity changed my life in numerous aspects. I lacked the bravery or self-belief to reach out at an elite institution and seek a position. Additionally, I had consistently hoped to pursue education overseas, but lacked the financial means without that tuition waiver.
Critically, that job in New York resulted in a job in Zurich where I encountered my wonderful partner, with whom I am raising four amazing children. This was a pivotal life event. That helpful person changed my trajectory in life, and I’m forever grateful.
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