In the final years of the 1980s, I set out on a backpacking trip to Europe with a companion. Since my travel mate was considering starting a postgraduate program in NYC, we had planned a two-week stay there before heading to London.
We reached the student accommodation, a big ten-floor structure on the UWS known as International House. Once we unpacked, we headed straight to the dining hall, where we picked up meals, took a seat, and started talking to other diners.
Beside me was an gentleman from Iraq pursuing an engineering degree at an Ivy League institution. He wanted to know what I did, and I told him that I had newly finished with a science degree and had been working on studies involving microscopic analysis.
He pointed out that there was an microscopy facility at Columbia University – close to the engineering department, which was how he knew about it. He suggested that I should apply for a position with them. I laughed it off, telling him that I was soon departing to Europe and, more critically, I lacked a US visa.
The next day I went out exploring, returning to the canteen that after dark. The engineering student came up to me and let me know that he had arranged an interview for me with the head of the electron microscope unit at Columbia. Given that he had made the arrangement, I went to the meeting – but immediately explained to my prospective employer that I didn’t have a visa, so I was probably wasting her time.
In typical New York fashion – a city where everything seems achievable – she said: “That can be arranged. When can you start?” I didn't board the aircraft to London.
I worked there for three years. An advantage of the role was that I was granted free tuition at Columbia, and I took advantage to complete a master’s of international affairs.
We didn't cross paths after that and I am unaware of his name, but his remarkable generosity transformed my future in numerous aspects. I didn't possess the courage or nerve to contact anyone at an elite institution and request employment. Moreover, I had consistently hoped to take classes in another country, but wouldn't have been able to pay for it without that educational benefit.
Critically, that job in New York resulted in a job in Zurich where I encountered my beautiful French husband, with whom I currently share four wonderful sons and daughters. That encounter altered everything. That benevolent individual set me on a different course in life, and I’m always appreciative.
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