During the final years of the 1980s, I was embarking on a budget travel adventure to Europe with a travel partner. Since my companion was interested in pursuing a master’s degree in the Big Apple, we had planned a 14-day stopover there before heading to London.
We arrived at the student accommodation, a big 10-storey building on the 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 began chatting with people eating there.
Adjacent to my seat was an gentleman from Iraq pursuing an engineering degree at a prestigious New York university. He inquired what I did for a living, and I shared that I had just graduated with a scientific background and had been conducting research with electron microscopy.
He noted that there was an research lab at Columbia University – close to the engineering department, which was the reason he was familiar with it. He recommended that I consider applying 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.
A day later I toured the city, returning to the canteen that after dark. The Iraqi student approached me and told me that he had organized a discussion for me with the head of the electron microscope unit at Columbia. Since he had taken the effort, I went to the meeting – but immediately explained to my interviewer that I lacked the necessary visa, so I was probably wasting her time.
In typical New York fashion – a place where anything feels possible – she declared: “That can be arranged. How soon can you begin?” I never got on that flight to London.
I held that position for three years. An advantage of the role was that I was granted free tuition at Columbia, and I used the opportunity to finish a postgrad program in international relations.
I lost touch with him and I am unaware of his name, but his remarkable generosity altered my destiny in numerous aspects. I would never have had the bravery or nerve to approach someone at an prestigious college and ask for a job. And, I had long dreamed to pursue education overseas, but could never have afforded it without that tuition waiver.
What's more, that role at the university resulted in a position in Switzerland where I got to know my wonderful partner, with whom I currently share four amazing children. That encounter altered everything. That helpful person redirected my path in life, and I’m forever grateful.
Can you recall the Kindest Gesture a Unknown Person Has Shown for You?
From cheering you up to altering your path, we would love to know chance encounters that have remained in your memory.
Feel free to recount your experience if you are 18 or over, anonymously if you choose. What you share are secure, and are solely for the purpose of this feature.
