In the late 1980s, I was embarking on a budget travel adventure to Europe with a friend. Because my companion was considering starting a postgraduate program in the Big Apple, we had planned a two-week stay there on the way to London.
We reached the postgrad residence, a sizeable multi-story edifice on the Manhattan's Upper West Side known as International House. After dropping our bags, we went directly to the dining hall, where we got some food, sat down, and engaged in conversation with people eating there.
Beside me was an gentleman from Iraq enrolled in an engineering program at an Ivy League institution. He asked me what I did, and I shared that I had recently completed my studies with a degree in science and had been working on studies with electron microscopy.
He noted that there was an research lab at the university – adjacent to the engineering department, which was the reason he was familiar with it. He suggested that I consider applying for a job with them. I laughed it off, saying that I was soon departing to Europe and, more critically, I lacked a US visa.
A day later I went out exploring, coming back to the dining hall that evening. The engineering student walked over to me and told me that he had arranged an interview for me with the director of the microscopy lab at Columbia. Since he had taken the effort, I showed up for the discussion – but immediately informed my host that I was without a work permit, so I was likely not a suitable candidate.
As is common in NYC – a metropolis where everything seems achievable – she said: “We'll handle it. What's your start date?” I never got on that flight to London.
I worked there for three years. An advantage of the role was that I also received complimentary education at Columbia, and I took advantage to complete a graduate degree in global studies.
I lost touch with him and I don’t even know his identity, but his remarkable generosity altered my destiny in multiple respects. I lacked the bravery or self-assurance to contact anyone at an prestigious college and request employment. Moreover, I had consistently hoped to take classes in another country, but lacked the financial means without that tuition waiver.
Perhaps most importantly, that role at the university resulted in a role in Europe where I encountered my handsome spouse from France, with whom I now have four wonderful sons and daughters. This was a pivotal life event. That benevolent individual redirected my path in life, and I’m forever grateful.
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