During the closing decade of the 80s, I set out on a backpacking trip to the European continent with a companion. Since my travel mate was interested in starting a postgraduate program in New York, we had planned a 14-day stopover there before heading to London.
We got to the graduate housing, a big ten-floor structure on the Manhattan's Upper West Side known as International House. Setting down our luggage, we went directly to the cafeteria, where we picked up meals, sat down, and started talking to other diners.
Beside me was an gentleman from Iraq studying engineering at a prestigious New York university. He asked me what I did, and I told him 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 electron microscope unit at Columbia University – right next door to the engineering department, which was the reason he was familiar with it. He recommended that I ought to seek a position with them. I dismissed the idea, explaining that I was about to fly to Europe and, even more importantly, I lacked a US visa.
The next day I ventured out, coming back to the dining hall that night. The engineering student approached me and informed me that he had set up a meeting for me with the head of the electron microscope unit at Columbia. Given that he had made the arrangement, I went to the meeting – but straight off told my host that I didn’t have a visa, so I was probably wasting her time.
As is common in NYC – a place where everything seems achievable – she said: “We'll handle it. How soon can you begin?” I didn't board the aircraft to London.
I worked there for a trio of years. An advantage of the role was that I was granted free tuition at Columbia, and I took advantage to finish a master’s of international affairs.
I lost touch with him and I am unaware of his full name, but his incredible act of kindness changed my life in so many ways. I didn't possess the bravery or self-belief to contact anyone at an elite institution and request employment. And, I had long dreamed to study abroad, but wouldn't have been able to pay for it without that free tuition.
Perhaps most importantly, that gig at Columbia led me to a position in Switzerland where I encountered my handsome spouse from France, with whom I currently share a family of four kids. This was a pivotal life event. That benevolent individual set me on a different course in life, and I’m eternally thankful.
Can you recall the Nicest Thing a Unknown Person Has Ever Done for You?
From cheering you up to transforming your future, we are interested in random meetings that have stuck with you.
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