In the closing decade of the 80s, I set out on a backpacking trip to Europe with a companion. Because my friend was considering starting a postgraduate program in NYC, we had arranged a 14-day stopover there before heading to London.
We got to the student accommodation, a big 10-storey building on the Manhattan's Upper West Side known as International House. After dropping our bags, we headed straight to the canteen, where we grabbed food, found a table, and began chatting with other diners.
Sitting next to 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 just graduated with a scientific background and had been working on studies with electron microscopy.
He noted that there was an electron microscope unit at the institution – right next door to the engineering department, which was the reason he was familiar with it. He recommended that I ought to seek a job with them. I laughed it off, explaining that I was about to fly to Europe and, additionally, I lacked a US visa.
The next day I toured the city, returning to the canteen that night. The man from Iraq approached me and told me that he had arranged an interview for me with the head of the electron microscope unit at Columbia. Because he had made the arrangement, I showed up for the discussion – but right away explained to my host that I didn’t have a visa, so I was probably wasting her time.
Reflecting the city's spirit – a metropolis where everything seems achievable – she responded: “We'll handle it. When can you start?” I never got on that flight to London.
I held that position for 36 months. One of the benefits was that I was granted free tuition at Columbia, and I seized the chance to earn a postgrad program in international relations.
I never saw that student again and I am unaware of his full name, but his incredible act of kindness transformed my future in so many ways. I would never have had the courage or nerve to reach out at an prestigious college and request employment. Moreover, I had consistently hoped to study abroad, but could never have afforded it without that free tuition.
What's more, that role at the university paved the way for a role in Europe where I met my beautiful French husband, with whom I am raising four amazing children. This was a pivotal life event. That kind stranger changed my trajectory in life, and I’m forever grateful.
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