In the late 1980s, I was beginning a budget travel adventure to Europe with a companion. Because my companion was interested in enrolling in graduate studies in New York, we had booked a fortnight visit there en route to London.
We reached the graduate housing, a big ten-floor structure on the Manhattan's Upper West Side known as International House. After dropping our bags, we headed straight to the dining hall, where we picked up meals, sat down, and began chatting with other diners.
Beside me was an gentleman from Iraq pursuing an engineering degree at Columbia University. He asked me what I did for a living, and I told him that I had just graduated with a science degree and had been performing experiments using an electron microscope.
He noted that there was an research lab at Columbia University – close to the engineering department, which was the reason he was familiar with it. He suggested that I consider applying for a position with them. I dismissed the idea, explaining that I was soon departing to Europe and, even more importantly, I didn’t have a US visa.
The next day I ventured out, going back to the cafeteria that after dark. The engineering student walked over to me and told me that he had organized a discussion for me with the head of the electron microscope unit at Columbia. Since he had gone to the trouble, I went to the meeting – but right away told my host that I lacked the necessary visa, so I was probably wasting her time.
In typical New York fashion – a city where everything seems achievable – she declared: “That can be arranged. When can you start?” I missed my plane to London.
I worked there for a trio of years. A perk of the job was that I got no-cost classes at Columbia, and I used the opportunity to complete a master’s of international affairs.
We didn't cross paths after that and I don’t even know his full name, but his selfless gesture changed my life in so many ways. I would never have had the bravery or self-assurance to approach someone 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 free tuition.
What's more, that role at the university led me to a role in Europe where I got to know my wonderful partner, with whom I now have four wonderful sons and daughters. This was a pivotal life event. That kind stranger changed my trajectory in life, and I’m forever grateful.
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