During the final years of the 1980s, I was beginning a backpacking trip to the European continent with a companion. Since my friend was exploring starting a postgraduate program in NYC, we had planned a two-week stay there on the way to London.
We got to the graduate housing, a large ten-floor structure on the Upper West Side known as International House. Setting down our luggage, we made our way to the dining hall, where we grabbed food, sat down, and started talking to fellow residents.
Adjacent to my seat was an individual of Iraqi origin studying engineering at an Ivy League institution. He wanted to know what I did, and I shared that I had recently completed my studies with a degree in science and had been working on studies involving microscopic analysis.
He mentioned that there was an research lab at the university – close to the school of engineering, which was the reason he was familiar with it. He suggested that I consider applying for a job with them. I dismissed the idea, telling him that I was heading off to Europe and, even more importantly, I did not possess a US visa.
A day later I went out exploring, returning to the canteen that evening. The Iraqi student came up to me and let me know that he had organized a discussion for me with the director of the microscopy lab at Columbia. Because he had made the arrangement, I showed up for the discussion – but immediately informed my host that I was without a work permit, so I was unable to accept the role.
In typical New York fashion – a city where opportunities abound – she declared: “We can make that happen. How soon can you begin?” I missed my plane to London.
I worked there for a trio of years. One of the benefits was that I was granted complimentary education at Columbia, and I used the opportunity to complete a postgrad program in international relations.
I never saw that student again and I don’t even know his name, but his remarkable generosity changed my life in so many ways. I didn't possess the bravery or self-assurance to approach someone at an elite institution and seek a position. Moreover, I had consistently hoped to take classes in another country, but wouldn't have been able to pay for it without that tuition waiver.
Critically, that role at the university led me to a job in Zurich where I encountered my beautiful French husband, with whom I now have four amazing children. This was a pivotal life event. That benevolent individual redirected my path in life, and I’m always appreciative.
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