During the final years of the 1980s, I was embarking on a low-cost journey to Europe with a companion. Because my friend was considering enrolling in graduate studies in New York, we had arranged a fortnight visit there before heading to London.
We arrived at the student accommodation, a sizeable 10-storey building on the Manhattan's Upper West Side called International House. After dropping our bags, we made our way to the dining hall, where we picked up meals, found a table, and started talking to other diners.
Sitting next to me was an individual of Iraqi origin enrolled in an engineering program at Columbia University. He inquired what I did for a living, and I explained that I had newly finished with a science degree and had been conducting research using an electron microscope.
He noted that there was an research lab at the institution – right next door to the engineering faculty, which was the reason he was familiar with it. He recommended that I consider applying for a role with them. I chuckled at the suggestion, 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 ventured out, going back to the cafeteria that evening. The engineering student walked over to me and told me that he had arranged an interview for me with the leader of the research team at Columbia. Given that he had taken the effort, I went to the meeting – but immediately told my interviewer that I lacked the necessary visa, so I was probably wasting her time.
As is common in NYC – a place where anything feels possible – she said: “We can make that happen. What's your start date?” I never got on that flight to London.
I worked there for a trio of years. One of the benefits was that I also received no-cost classes at Columbia, and I took advantage to earn a graduate degree in global studies.
I lost touch with him and I don’t even know his full name, but his selfless gesture transformed my future in so many ways. I lacked the courage or self-belief to contact anyone at an prestigious college and request employment. Moreover, I had long dreamed to study abroad, but could never have afforded it without that tuition waiver.
Perhaps most importantly, that gig at Columbia paved the way for a position in Switzerland where I encountered my handsome spouse from France, with whom I now have four amazing children. That encounter altered everything. That benevolent individual set me on a different course in life, and I’m forever grateful.
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