During the final years of the 1980s, I was beginning a low-cost journey to the European continent with a friend. Since my travel mate was exploring starting a postgraduate program in New York, we had booked a 14-day stopover there before heading to London.
We arrived at the graduate housing, a large multi-story edifice on the Upper West Side named International House. Setting down our luggage, we headed straight to the dining hall, where we got some food, found a table, and started talking to people eating there.
Adjacent to my seat was an gentleman from Iraq enrolled in an engineering program at Columbia University. He wanted to know what I my profession was, and I explained that I had just graduated with a degree in science and had been conducting research involving microscopic analysis.
He noted that there was an research lab at the institution – close to the engineering faculty, which was how he knew about it. He suggested that I ought to seek a role with them. I dismissed the idea, telling him that I was soon departing to Europe and, additionally, I lacked a US visa.
A day later I ventured out, going back to the cafeteria that after dark. The Iraqi student came up to me and informed me that he had arranged an interview for me with the head of the electron microscope unit at Columbia. Because he had gone to the trouble, I showed up for the discussion – but right away told my prospective employer that I lacked the necessary visa, so I was probably wasting her time.
Reflecting the city's spirit – a place where anything feels possible – she responded: “We can make that happen. What's your start date?” 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 took advantage to finish a master’s of international affairs.
We didn't cross paths after that and I don’t even know his name, but his incredible act of kindness changed my life in so many ways. I didn't possess the confidence or self-assurance to contact anyone at an elite institution and ask for a job. And, I had consistently hoped to study abroad, but lacked the financial means without that educational benefit.
Critically, that gig at Columbia led me to a position in Switzerland where I got to know my beautiful French husband, with whom I now have four amazing children. That encounter altered everything. That kind stranger redirected my path in life, and I’m eternally thankful.
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