In the final years of the 1980s, I set out on a backpacking trip to Europe with a travel partner. Since my travel mate was considering pursuing a master’s degree in NYC, we had arranged a two-week stay there on the way to London.
We arrived at the student accommodation, a large multi-story edifice on the UWS called International House. After dropping our bags, we made our way to the dining hall, where we got some food, sat down, and started talking to people eating there.
Beside me was an Iraqi man enrolled in an engineering program at Columbia University. He inquired what I did for a living, and I shared that I had recently completed my studies with a degree in science and had been working on studies with electron microscopy.
He pointed out that there was an microscopy facility at the institution – right next door to the engineering department, which was the reason he was familiar with it. He suggested that I should apply for a role with them. I chuckled at the suggestion, explaining that I was heading off to Europe and, additionally, I did not possess a US visa.
The next day I ventured out, coming back to the dining hall that evening. The engineering student came up to me and told me that he had set up a meeting for me with the leader of the research team at Columbia. Since he had gone to the trouble, I went to the meeting – but right away told my host that I didn’t have a visa, so I was probably wasting her time.
As is common in NYC – a city where everything seems achievable – she responded: “That can be arranged. How soon can you begin?” I never got on that flight to London.
I was employed there for three years. An advantage of the role was that I got complimentary education at Columbia, and I took advantage to earn a graduate degree in global studies.
I never saw that student again and I am unaware of his identity, but his selfless gesture transformed my future in numerous aspects. I would never have had the courage or self-assurance to approach someone at an elite institution and request employment. Additionally, I had always wanted to study abroad, but could never have afforded it without that free tuition.
Perhaps most importantly, that gig at Columbia led me to a job in Zurich where I met my beautiful French husband, with whom I now have four amazing children. That encounter altered everything. That kind stranger changed my trajectory in life, and I’m always appreciative.
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