In the closing decade of the 80s, I was embarking on a low-cost journey to the European continent with a travel partner. Since my companion was exploring starting a postgraduate program in NYC, we had arranged a 14-day stopover there on the way to London.
We reached the student accommodation, a sizeable multi-story edifice on the Manhattan's Upper West Side called International House. After dropping our bags, we went directly to the dining hall, where we picked up meals, sat down, and started talking to people eating there.
Beside me was an Iraqi man enrolled in an engineering program at a prestigious New York university. He wanted to know 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 research lab at the university – right next door to the engineering faculty, which was the reason he was familiar with it. He suggested that I ought to seek a role with them. I dismissed the idea, explaining that I was soon departing to Europe and, more critically, I didn’t have a US visa.
A day later I went out exploring, going back to the cafeteria that evening. The man from Iraq came up to me and informed me that he had set up a meeting for me with the director of the microscopy lab at Columbia. Given that he had taken the effort, I showed up for the discussion – but straight off informed my interviewer that I didn’t have a visa, so I was likely not a suitable candidate.
Reflecting the city's spirit – a place where opportunities abound – she responded: “We can make that happen. How soon can you begin?” I didn't board the aircraft to London.
I was employed there for three years. One of the benefits was that I got complimentary education at Columbia, and I used the opportunity to earn a graduate degree in global studies.
We didn't cross paths after that and I can't recall his name, but his incredible act of kindness transformed my future in so many ways. I lacked the confidence or self-assurance to contact anyone at an elite institution and ask for a job. Moreover, I had consistently hoped to pursue education overseas, but wouldn't have been able to pay for it without that free tuition.
Critically, that job in New York paved the way for a job in Zurich where I got to know my beautiful French husband, with whom I currently share a family of four kids. This was a pivotal life event. That helpful person changed my trajectory in life, and I’m always appreciative.
What is the Most Generous Act a Unknown Person Has Shown for You?
From cheering you up to changing your life, we would love to know random meetings that have left a lasting impression.
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