In the final years of the 1980s, I was beginning a budget travel adventure to Europe with a companion. Since my travel mate was considering starting a postgraduate program in the Big Apple, we had planned a two-week stay there before heading to London.
We got to the graduate housing, a sizeable multi-story edifice on the Upper West Side called International House. Once we unpacked, we went directly to the dining hall, where we got some food, sat down, and engaged in conversation with people eating there.
Sitting next to me was an gentleman from Iraq studying engineering at Columbia University. He inquired what I did, and I shared that I had just graduated with a scientific background and had been conducting research using an electron microscope.
He noted that there was an research lab at the university – close to the school of engineering, which was why he was aware of it. He proposed that I ought to seek a position with them. I dismissed the idea, explaining that I was about to fly to Europe and, even more importantly, I did not possess a US visa.
A day later I went out exploring, going back to the cafeteria that evening. The engineering student came up to me and informed me that he had set up a meeting for me with the head of the electron microscope unit at Columbia. Given that he had taken the effort, I showed up for the discussion – but straight off told my host that I lacked the necessary visa, so I was probably wasting her time.
As is common in NYC – a place where opportunities abound – she said: “We'll handle it. When can you start?” I never got on that flight to London.
I was employed there for a trio of years. A perk of the job was that I was granted complimentary education at Columbia, and I seized the chance to earn a master’s of international affairs.
We didn't cross paths after that and I am unaware of his name, but his incredible act of kindness altered my destiny in multiple respects. I didn't possess the confidence or nerve to reach out at an Ivy League university and ask for a job. Additionally, I had always wanted to study abroad, but wouldn't have been able to pay for it without that free tuition.
What's more, that job in New York led me to a role in Europe where I got to know my wonderful partner, with whom I now have a family of four kids. That encounter altered everything. That benevolent individual set me on a different course in life, and I’m always appreciative.
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