During the final years of the 1980s, I set out on a low-cost journey to the European continent with a travel partner. Since my travel mate was exploring starting a postgraduate program in NYC, we had booked a two-week stay there en route to London.
We reached the postgrad residence, a sizeable ten-floor structure on the Manhattan's Upper West Side known as International House. After dropping our bags, we made our way to the canteen, where we picked up meals, sat down, and began chatting with fellow residents.
Adjacent to my seat was an individual of Iraqi origin enrolled in an engineering program at Columbia University. He wanted to know what I my profession was, and I told him that I had recently completed my studies with a scientific background and had been working on studies with electron microscopy.
He mentioned that there was an research lab at the institution – adjacent to the engineering department, which was the reason he was familiar with it. He suggested that I ought to seek a job with them. I chuckled at the suggestion, saying that I was soon departing to Europe and, more critically, I lacked a US visa.
The next day I went out exploring, returning to the canteen that night. The engineering student approached me and let me know that he had arranged an interview for me with the leader of the research team at Columbia. Since he had made the arrangement, I went to the meeting – but straight off informed my interviewer that I didn’t have a visa, so I was probably wasting her time.
As is common in NYC – a place where opportunities abound – she said: “We'll handle it. How soon can you begin?” I never got on that flight to London.
I was employed there for 36 months. A perk of the job was that I got free tuition at Columbia, and I seized the chance to complete a graduate degree in global studies.
We didn't cross paths after that and I don’t even know his name, but his remarkable generosity changed my life in numerous aspects. I lacked the bravery or nerve to approach someone at an elite institution and seek a position. Additionally, I had always wanted to study abroad, but could never have afforded it without that educational benefit.
Critically, that role at the university led me to a role in Europe where I got to know my wonderful partner, with whom I now have a family of four kids. It was a total sliding doors moment. That kind stranger set me on a different course in life, and I’m eternally thankful.
Can you recall the Most Generous Act a Stranger Has Shown for You?
From cheering you up to transforming your future, we are interested in unexpected interactions that have remained in your memory.
We invite you to tell us if you are an adult, keeping your details private if you choose. The stories you tell are confidential, and are intended for the purpose of this feature.
