In the final years of the 1980s, I set out on a backpacking trip to the European continent with a friend. Because my travel mate was interested in enrolling in graduate studies in the Big Apple, we had planned a 14-day stopover there before heading to London.
We got to the postgrad residence, a big multi-story edifice on the UWS named International House. After dropping our bags, we went directly to the cafeteria, where we picked up meals, found a table, and started talking to other diners.
Beside me was an Iraqi man studying engineering at Columbia University. He wanted to know what I did, and I told him that I had recently completed my studies with a science degree and had been performing experiments using an electron microscope.
He mentioned that there was an electron microscope unit at the institution – right next door to the engineering department, which was the reason he was familiar with it. He proposed that I ought to seek a position with them. I chuckled at the suggestion, saying that I was about to fly to Europe and, additionally, I didn’t have a US visa.
The following day I went out exploring, going back to the cafeteria that evening. The engineering student approached me and told me that he had organized a discussion for me with the leader of the research team at Columbia. Since he had made the arrangement, I attended the interview – but immediately informed my prospective employer that I was without a work permit, so I was probably wasting her time.
As is common in NYC – a city where everything seems achievable – she declared: “We can make that happen. When can you start?” I missed my plane to London.
I held that position for three years. An advantage of the role was that I got no-cost classes at Columbia, and I took advantage to earn a graduate degree in global studies.
We didn't cross paths after that and I can't recall his full name, but his selfless gesture altered my destiny in multiple respects. I would never have had the bravery or self-belief to approach someone at an Ivy League university and seek a position. And, I had always wanted to study abroad, but could never have afforded it without that tuition waiver.
Critically, that role at the university resulted in a job in Zurich where I met my beautiful French husband, with whom I currently share a family of four kids. That encounter altered everything. That helpful person changed my trajectory in life, and I’m eternally thankful.
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