During the final years of the 1980s, I was embarking on a backpacking trip to the European continent with a companion. Because my travel mate was interested in pursuing a master’s degree in NYC, we had planned a fortnight visit there before heading to London.
We reached the student accommodation, a large ten-floor structure on the Manhattan's Upper West Side known as International House. Once we unpacked, we went directly to the cafeteria, where we picked up meals, sat down, and engaged in conversation with people eating there.
Beside me was an individual of Iraqi origin enrolled in an engineering program at an Ivy League institution. He inquired what I did, and I shared that I had newly finished with a scientific background and had been conducting research involving microscopic analysis.
He mentioned that there was an electron microscope unit at Columbia University – close to the engineering department, which was how he knew about it. He proposed that I ought to seek a role with them. I laughed it off, explaining that I was about to fly to Europe and, even more importantly, I did not possess a US visa.
A day later I went out exploring, returning to the canteen that after dark. The man from Iraq 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 gone to the trouble, I attended the interview – but straight off informed my interviewer that I was without a work permit, so I was likely not a suitable candidate.
In typical New York fashion – a metropolis where opportunities abound – she declared: “We can make that happen. What's your start date?” I didn't board the aircraft to London.
I held that position for three years. A perk of the job was that I also received free tuition at Columbia, and I seized the chance to finish a master’s of international affairs.
I never saw that student again 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 seek a position. Moreover, I had long dreamed to study abroad, but wouldn't have been able to pay for it without that tuition waiver.
Critically, that job in New York led me to a position in Switzerland where I encountered my handsome spouse from France, with whom I am raising four amazing children. This was a pivotal life event. That helpful person changed my trajectory in life, and I’m forever grateful.
Can you recall the Most Generous Act a Someone You Didn't Know Has Ever Done for You?
From making your day to altering your path, we are interested in random meetings that have stuck with you.
Feel free to recount your experience if you are 18 or over, anonymously if you prefer. Your responses are secure, and will only be used the aim of this article.
