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During the final years of the 1980s, I was beginning a budget travel adventure to the European continent with a friend. Because my companion was considering pursuing a master’s degree in the Big Apple, we had booked a two-week stay there on the way to London.

We arrived at the student accommodation, a sizeable ten-floor structure on the Manhattan's Upper West Side called International House. Once we unpacked, we made our way to the cafeteria, where we got some food, took a seat, and began chatting with people eating there.

Adjacent to my seat was an gentleman from Iraq enrolled in an engineering program at a prestigious New York university. He asked me what I did, and I explained that I had newly finished with a science degree and had been conducting research involving microscopic analysis.

He noted that there was an electron microscope unit at the institution – close to the engineering faculty, which was the reason he was familiar with it. He proposed that I consider applying for a job with them. I laughed it off, explaining that I was heading off to Europe and, more critically, I lacked a US visa.

The next day I went out exploring, returning to the canteen that evening. The Iraqi student came up to me and let me know that he had organized a discussion for me with the director of the microscopy lab at Columbia. Since he had taken the effort, I went to the meeting – but straight off told my host that I was without a work permit, so I was unable to accept the role.

As is common in NYC – a city where opportunities abound – she responded: “That can be arranged. What's your start date?” I never got on that flight to London.

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

I never saw that student again and I can't recall his identity, but his incredible act of kindness altered my destiny in so many ways. I didn't possess the bravery or self-belief to contact anyone at an elite institution and request employment. And, I had consistently hoped to pursue education overseas, but wouldn't have been able to pay for it without that educational benefit.

Perhaps most importantly, that gig at Columbia paved the way for a job in Zurich where I encountered my wonderful partner, with whom I am raising four wonderful sons and daughters. It was a total sliding doors moment. That kind stranger set me on a different course in life, and I’m forever grateful.

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