The Compassion of Unknown Individuals: How a Gentleman I Barely Knew Supported Me Obtain the Position That Transformed My Existence

In the late 1980s, I set out on a low-cost journey to Europe with a friend. Because my companion was exploring starting a postgraduate program in the Big Apple, we had planned a 14-day stopover there on the way to London.

We got to the graduate housing, a big ten-floor structure on the Manhattan's Upper West Side named International House. After dropping our bags, we headed straight to the canteen, where we grabbed food, sat down, and started talking to other diners.

Beside me was an gentleman from Iraq pursuing an engineering degree at an Ivy League institution. He inquired what I did for a living, and I explained that I had newly finished with a science degree and had been conducting research involving microscopic analysis.

He mentioned that there was an research lab at the institution – adjacent to the engineering department, which was how he knew about it. He suggested that I should apply for a position with them. I dismissed the idea, explaining that I was soon departing to Europe and, even more importantly, I did not possess a US visa.

The next day I went out exploring, coming back to the dining hall that night. The engineering student walked over to me and let me know that he had set up a meeting for me with the director of the microscopy lab at Columbia. Because he had made the arrangement, I went to the meeting – but immediately informed my interviewer that I was without a work permit, so I was unable to accept the role.

In typical New York fashion – a metropolis where anything feels possible – she responded: “That can be arranged. What's your start date?” I didn't board the aircraft to London.

I was employed there for three years. One of the benefits was that I got no-cost classes at Columbia, and I used the opportunity to finish a graduate degree in global studies.

We didn't cross paths after that and I don’t even know his full name, but his remarkable generosity altered my destiny in so many ways. I lacked the confidence or nerve to reach out at an elite institution and request employment. Additionally, I had always wanted to take classes in another country, but could never have afforded it without that free tuition.

Critically, that gig at Columbia paved the way for a position in Switzerland where I met my handsome spouse from France, with whom I now have a family of four kids. This was a pivotal life event. That benevolent individual changed my trajectory in life, and I’m eternally thankful.

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