During the final years of the 1980s, I was embarking on a budget travel adventure to the European continent with a companion. Because my companion was interested in enrolling in graduate studies in NYC, we had arranged a two-week stay there en route to London.
We arrived at the postgrad residence, a big multi-story edifice on the UWS named International House. Setting down our luggage, we headed straight to the cafeteria, where we got some food, took a seat, and began chatting with other diners.
Beside me was an Iraqi man enrolled in an engineering program at Columbia University. He inquired what I did for a living, and I explained that I had newly finished with a degree in science and had been working on studies using an electron microscope.
He noted that there was an microscopy facility at the university – adjacent to the engineering faculty, which was why he was aware of it. He proposed that I ought to seek a job with them. I laughed it off, telling him that I was heading off to Europe and, additionally, I lacked a US visa.
A day later I toured the city, coming back to the dining hall that night. The man from Iraq 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. Given that he had gone to the trouble, I showed up for the discussion – but straight off told my interviewer that I was without a work permit, so I was probably wasting her time.
Reflecting the city's spirit – a city where everything seems achievable – she declared: “We'll handle it. What's your start date?” I missed my plane to London.
I worked there for 36 months. One of the benefits was that I got no-cost classes at Columbia, and I used the opportunity to earn a postgrad program in international relations.
We didn't cross paths after that and I can't recall his identity, but his incredible act of kindness transformed my future in multiple respects. I lacked the bravery or self-assurance to contact anyone at an prestigious college and ask for a job. And, I had always wanted to take classes in another country, but lacked the financial means without that tuition waiver.
What's more, 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 a family of four kids. This was a pivotal life event. That kind stranger changed my trajectory in life, and I’m forever grateful.
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