In the final years of the 1980s, I was beginning a backpacking trip to the European continent with a travel partner. Since my friend was interested in starting a postgraduate program in the Big Apple, we had arranged a 14-day stopover there en route to London.
We got to the student accommodation, a sizeable ten-floor structure on the Manhattan's Upper West Side known as International House. Once we unpacked, we went directly to the canteen, where we got some food, found a table, and started talking to other diners.
Adjacent to my seat was an gentleman from Iraq pursuing an engineering degree at Columbia University. He asked me what I did, and I shared that I had newly finished with a scientific background and had been conducting research with electron microscopy.
He pointed out that there was an electron microscope unit at Columbia University – adjacent to the school of engineering, which was the reason he was familiar with it. He proposed that I should apply for a job with them. I laughed it off, explaining that I was heading off to Europe and, additionally, I did not possess a US visa.
The next day I toured the city, coming back to the dining hall that evening. The man from Iraq walked over to me and told me that he had set up a meeting for me with the head of the electron microscope unit at Columbia. Given that he had gone to the trouble, I went to the meeting – but straight off informed my interviewer that I was without a work permit, so I was probably wasting her time.
As is common in NYC – a metropolis where opportunities abound – she said: “We'll handle it. How soon can you begin?” I didn't board the aircraft to London.
I worked there for three years. A perk of the job was that I was granted complimentary education at Columbia, and I took advantage to complete a postgrad program in international relations.
We didn't cross paths after that and I can't recall his full name, but his selfless gesture changed my life in multiple respects. I would never have had the courage or nerve to reach out at an Ivy League university and request employment. Moreover, I had always wanted to take classes in another country, but could never have afforded it without that tuition waiver.
What's more, that role at the university paved the way for a job in Zurich where I got to know my handsome spouse from France, with whom I currently share four wonderful sons and daughters. This was a pivotal life event. That kind stranger set me on a different course in life, and I’m eternally thankful.
Tell us about the Nicest Thing a Someone You Didn't Know Has Ever Done for You?
Whether it's making your day to transforming your future, we are interested in random meetings that have left a lasting impression.
We invite you to tell us if you are of legal age, anonymously if you wish. The stories you tell are confidential, and are intended for the purpose of this feature.
