In the closing decade of the 80s, I was embarking on a budget travel adventure to Europe with a travel partner. Since my travel mate was considering starting a postgraduate program in the Big Apple, we had arranged a two-week stay there on the way to London.
We reached the student accommodation, a big 10-storey building on the Manhattan's Upper West Side known as International House. Setting down our luggage, we made our way to the cafeteria, where we grabbed food, took a seat, and engaged in conversation with fellow residents.
Sitting next to me was an gentleman from Iraq studying engineering at Columbia University. He asked me what I my profession was, and I told him that I had newly finished with a science degree and had been performing experiments using an electron microscope.
He noted that there was an research lab at Columbia University – right next door to the engineering faculty, which was how he knew about it. He proposed that I should apply for a job with them. I laughed it off, explaining that I was heading off to Europe and, additionally, I lacked a US visa.
The following day I went out exploring, returning to the canteen that evening. The man from Iraq came up to me and told me that he had set up a meeting for me with the head of the electron microscope unit at Columbia. Because he had taken the effort, I showed up for the discussion – but right away explained to my interviewer that I was without a work permit, so I was likely not a suitable candidate.
In typical New York fashion – a metropolis where everything seems achievable – she responded: “We can make that happen. When can you start?” I never got on that flight to London.
I was employed there for a trio of years. An advantage of the role was that I was granted no-cost classes at Columbia, and I seized the chance to complete a master’s of international affairs.
I never saw that student again and I don’t even know his identity, but his selfless gesture transformed my future in multiple respects. I would never have had the courage or self-assurance to approach someone at an Ivy League university and seek a position. And, I had always wanted to study abroad, but wouldn't have been able to pay for it without that free tuition.
Critically, that gig at Columbia led me to a job in Zurich where I got to know my beautiful French husband, with whom I currently share a family of four kids. This was a pivotal life event. That kind stranger changed my trajectory in life, and I’m always appreciative.
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