During the late 1980s, I was beginning a budget travel adventure to Europe with a friend. Since my friend was exploring starting a postgraduate program in the Big Apple, we had planned a fortnight visit there on the way to London.
We reached the student accommodation, a sizeable multi-story edifice on the Upper West Side known as International House. Setting down our luggage, we made our way to the cafeteria, where we picked up meals, found a table, and engaged in conversation with other diners.
Sitting next to me was an individual of Iraqi origin studying engineering at a prestigious New York university. He wanted to know what I my profession was, and I shared that I had just graduated with a scientific background and had been working on studies involving microscopic analysis.
He noted that there was an research lab at the university – close to the school of engineering, which was how he knew about it. He proposed that I ought to seek a role with them. I laughed it off, saying that I was heading off to Europe and, more critically, I lacked a US visa.
The next day I toured the city, returning to the canteen that evening. The engineering student approached me and let me know that he had set up a meeting for me with the director of the microscopy lab at Columbia. Given that he had made the arrangement, I went to the meeting – but immediately told my host that I was without a work permit, so I was likely not a suitable candidate.
In typical New York fashion – a metropolis where everything seems achievable – she declared: “That can be arranged. What's your start date?” I didn't board the aircraft to London.
I worked there for 36 months. A perk of the job was that I also received no-cost classes at Columbia, and I used the opportunity to earn a master’s of international affairs.
I lost touch with him and I am unaware of his name, but his selfless gesture transformed my future in so many ways. I would never have had the confidence or self-belief to reach out at an elite institution and request employment. Additionally, I had always wanted to take classes in another country, but could never have afforded it without that tuition waiver.
Perhaps most importantly, that role at the university resulted in a job in Zurich where I got to know my handsome spouse from France, with whom I am raising a family of four kids. This was a pivotal life event. That kind stranger changed my trajectory in life, and I’m eternally thankful.
Tell us about the Most Generous Act a Stranger Has Once Performed for You?
Whether it's cheering you up to changing your life, we want to hear about unexpected interactions that have remained in your memory.
Feel free to recount your experience if you are an adult, anonymously if you prefer. The stories you tell are protected, and are intended for the aim of this article.
