During the closing decade of the 80s, I was beginning a low-cost journey to Europe with a travel partner. Because my companion was considering starting a postgraduate program in New York, we had arranged a 14-day stopover there on the way to London.
We reached the graduate housing, a big 10-storey building on the UWS called International House. Once we unpacked, we headed straight to the cafeteria, where we grabbed food, sat down, and started talking to people eating there.
Beside me was an individual of Iraqi origin enrolled in an engineering program at Columbia University. He asked me what I my profession was, and I told him that I had recently completed my studies with a scientific background and had been performing experiments with electron microscopy.
He pointed out that there was an electron microscope unit at the university – right next door to the engineering department, which was the reason he was familiar with it. He recommended that I consider applying for a job with them. I dismissed the idea, saying that I was about to fly to Europe and, additionally, I lacked a US visa.
The next day I toured the city, going back to the cafeteria that evening. The Iraqi student approached me and informed me that he had set up a meeting for me with the head of the electron microscope unit at Columbia. Because he had made the arrangement, I attended the interview – but immediately explained to my prospective employer that I didn’t have a visa, so I was unable to accept the role.
In typical New York fashion – a place where opportunities abound – she responded: “We can make that happen. How soon can you begin?” I never got on that flight to London.
I held that position for three years. A perk of the job was that I was granted no-cost classes at Columbia, and I took advantage to finish a graduate degree in global studies.
I lost touch with him and I can't recall his full name, but his selfless gesture transformed my future in so many ways. I didn't possess the confidence or nerve to reach out at an elite institution and ask for a job. Moreover, I had consistently hoped to pursue education overseas, but could never have afforded it without that educational benefit.
Critically, that gig at Columbia led me to a job in Zurich where I got to know my handsome spouse from France, with whom I am raising four wonderful sons and daughters. This was a pivotal life event. That kind stranger set me on a different course in life, and I’m forever grateful.
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