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During the late 1980s, I set out on a budget travel adventure to Europe with a travel partner. Because my friend was exploring enrolling in graduate studies in NYC, we had arranged a 14-day stopover there before heading to London.

We got to the graduate housing, a big 10-storey building on the UWS called International House. Once we unpacked, we made our way to the cafeteria, where we grabbed food, sat down, and started talking to fellow residents.

Beside me was an individual of Iraqi origin studying engineering at Columbia University. He inquired what I did, and I shared that I had just graduated with a science degree and had been performing experiments using an electron microscope.

He mentioned that there was an research lab at the university – close to the school of engineering, which was how he knew about it. He suggested that I should apply for a position with them. I chuckled at the suggestion, saying that I was heading off to Europe and, even more importantly, I lacked a US visa.

The next day I ventured out, going back to the cafeteria that after dark. The Iraqi student came up to me and let me know that he had set up a meeting for me with the head of the electron microscope unit at Columbia. Since he had gone to the trouble, I attended the interview – but immediately informed my interviewer that I lacked the necessary visa, so I was probably wasting her time.

In typical New York fashion – a city where opportunities abound – she said: “We'll handle it. How soon can you begin?” I never got on that flight to London.

I held that position for a trio of years. A perk of the job was that I also received no-cost classes at Columbia, and I took advantage to finish a master’s of international affairs.

I lost touch with him and I can't recall his name, but his selfless gesture altered my destiny in so many ways. I would never have had the courage or nerve to reach out at an prestigious college and ask for a job. Moreover, I had long dreamed to take classes in another country, but wouldn't have been able to pay for it without that free tuition.

Perhaps most importantly, that role at the university paved the way for a job in Zurich where I met my wonderful partner, 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 eternally thankful.

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