During the closing decade of the 80s, I was beginning a budget travel adventure to Europe with a companion. Since my companion was interested in pursuing a master’s degree in NYC, we had planned a two-week stay there en route to London.
We arrived at the student accommodation, a big multi-story edifice on the Manhattan's Upper West Side called International House. Setting down our luggage, we headed straight to the cafeteria, where we got some food, found a table, and began chatting with people eating there.
Sitting next to me was an Iraqi man studying engineering at a prestigious New York university. He inquired what I my profession was, and I shared that I had recently completed my studies with a science degree and had been performing experiments involving microscopic analysis.
He pointed out that there was an electron microscope unit at the university – adjacent to the engineering department, which was why he was aware of it. He recommended that I ought to seek a position with them. I laughed it off, telling him that I was soon departing to Europe and, additionally, I did not possess a US visa.
The following day I toured the city, returning to the canteen that night. The Iraqi student came up to me and told me that he had arranged an interview for me with the head of the electron microscope unit at Columbia. Given that he had made the arrangement, I attended the interview – but immediately informed my host that I lacked the necessary visa, so I was probably wasting her time.
As is common in NYC – a city where opportunities abound – 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. One of the benefits was that I also received no-cost classes at Columbia, and I used the opportunity to complete a postgrad program in international relations.
I lost touch with him and I am unaware of his identity, but his remarkable generosity altered my destiny in numerous aspects. I lacked the bravery or nerve to reach out at an elite institution and ask for a job. And, I had consistently hoped to take classes in another country, but wouldn't have been able to pay for it without that tuition waiver.
Perhaps most importantly, that gig at Columbia paved the way for a role in Europe where I got to know my handsome spouse from France, with whom I now have a family of four kids. That encounter altered everything. That benevolent individual redirected my path in life, and I’m forever grateful.
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