In the late 1980s, I set out on a budget travel adventure to the European continent with a travel partner. Because my travel mate was considering starting a postgraduate program in NYC, we had booked a 14-day stopover there en route to London.
We reached the postgrad residence, a sizeable ten-floor structure on the Upper West Side named International House. Setting down our luggage, we headed straight to the dining hall, where we picked up meals, sat down, and began chatting with people eating there.
Sitting next to me was an gentleman from Iraq enrolled in an engineering program at an Ivy League institution. He asked me what I did for a living, and I explained that I had newly finished with a degree in science and had been conducting research with electron microscopy.
He pointed out that there was an research lab at the institution – right next door to the engineering department, which was why he was aware of it. He suggested that I should apply for a position with them. I chuckled at the suggestion, saying that I was soon departing to Europe and, even more importantly, I lacked a US visa.
The following day I ventured out, going back to the cafeteria that evening. The man from Iraq came up to me and let me know that he had arranged an interview for me with the director of the microscopy lab at Columbia. Since he had made the arrangement, I went to the meeting – but straight off informed my host that I lacked the necessary visa, so I was probably wasting her time.
In typical New York fashion – a city where anything feels possible – she responded: “We'll handle it. When can you start?” I never got on that flight to London.
I held that position for three years. One of the benefits was that I got no-cost classes at Columbia, and I seized the chance to complete a master’s of international affairs.
I never saw that student again and I am unaware of his identity, but his remarkable generosity altered my destiny in so many ways. I lacked the courage or nerve to reach out at an Ivy League university and request employment. Additionally, I had always wanted to pursue education overseas, but could never have afforded it without that educational benefit.
Perhaps most importantly, that job in New York paved the way for a job in Zurich where I got to know my wonderful partner, with whom I now have four amazing children. It was a total sliding doors moment. That kind stranger changed my trajectory in life, and I’m eternally thankful.
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