During the final years of the 1980s, I was beginning a backpacking trip to Europe with a companion. Because my companion was exploring starting a postgraduate program in NYC, we had arranged a two-week stay there on the way to London.
We arrived at the graduate housing, a big 10-storey building on the UWS known as International House. After dropping our bags, we went directly to the canteen, where we grabbed food, sat down, and engaged in conversation with people eating there.
Beside me was an Iraqi man enrolled in an engineering program at Columbia University. He inquired what I my profession was, and I explained that I had just graduated with a science degree and had been conducting research using an electron microscope.
He pointed out that there was an microscopy facility at the university – right next door to the engineering department, which was why he was aware of it. He recommended that I consider applying for a role with them. I chuckled at the suggestion, explaining that I was soon departing to Europe and, additionally, I did not possess a US visa.
A day later I toured the city, returning to the canteen that night. The man from Iraq walked over to me and let me know that he had arranged an interview for me with the head of the electron microscope unit at Columbia. Because he had gone to the trouble, I attended the interview – but right away told my host that I didn’t have a visa, so I was probably wasting her time.
In typical New York fashion – a city where opportunities abound – she declared: “We'll handle it. How soon can you begin?” I missed my plane to London.
I was employed there for 36 months. An advantage of the role was that I got free tuition at Columbia, and I used the opportunity to finish a postgrad program in international relations.
We didn't cross paths after that and I can't recall his name, but his incredible act of kindness changed my life in so many ways. I didn't possess the courage or nerve to contact anyone at an prestigious college and seek a position. Moreover, I had long dreamed to study abroad, but wouldn't have been able to pay for it without that tuition waiver.
What's more, that gig at Columbia paved the way for a job in Zurich where I met my handsome spouse from France, with whom I am raising four amazing children. It was a total sliding doors moment. That helpful person redirected my path in life, and I’m always appreciative.
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