In the closing decade of the 80s, I set out on a budget travel adventure to the European continent with a travel partner. Because my companion was interested in starting a postgraduate program in New York, we had booked a 14-day stopover there en route to London.
We got to the graduate housing, a sizeable multi-story edifice on the Upper West Side named International House. Setting down our luggage, we headed straight to the cafeteria, where we grabbed food, sat down, and began chatting with other diners.
Adjacent to my seat was an gentleman from Iraq studying engineering at an Ivy League institution. He asked me what I did for a living, and I shared that I had newly finished with a science degree and had been conducting research with electron microscopy.
He noted that there was an electron microscope unit at the institution – adjacent to the school of engineering, which was the reason he was familiar with it. He suggested that I ought to seek a position with them. I laughed it off, explaining that I was soon departing to Europe and, additionally, I didn’t have a US visa.
A day later I went out exploring, going back to the cafeteria that after dark. The man from Iraq approached me and told me that he had set up a meeting for me with the leader of the research team at Columbia. Because he had made the arrangement, I went to the meeting – but immediately informed my interviewer that I didn’t have a visa, so I was unable to accept the role.
As is common in NYC – a place where anything feels possible – she declared: “We'll handle it. How soon can you begin?” I didn't board the aircraft to London.
I worked there for 36 months. One of the benefits was that I was granted complimentary education at Columbia, and I seized the chance to complete a master’s of international affairs.
We didn't cross paths after that and I am unaware of his full name, but his incredible act of kindness altered my destiny in numerous aspects. I lacked the bravery or self-assurance to contact anyone at an Ivy League university and seek a position. And, I had long dreamed to take classes in another country, but could never have afforded it without that tuition waiver.
What's more, that job in New York resulted in a role in Europe where I encountered my wonderful partner, with whom I currently share four amazing children. It was a total sliding doors moment. That benevolent individual set me on a different course in life, and I’m forever grateful.
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