During the late 1980s, I set out on a low-cost journey to Europe with a friend. Because my friend was interested in starting a postgraduate program in the Big Apple, we had planned a two-week stay there before heading to London.
We arrived at the graduate housing, a sizeable 10-storey building on the UWS called International House. After dropping our bags, we made our way to the canteen, where we grabbed food, took a seat, and started talking to fellow residents.
Adjacent to my seat was an gentleman from Iraq studying engineering at a prestigious New York university. He asked me what I did for a living, and I shared that I had recently completed my studies with a science degree and had been conducting research with electron microscopy.
He noted that there was an electron microscope unit at Columbia University – right next door to the engineering department, which was why he was aware of it. He proposed that I ought to seek a position with them. I laughed it off, saying 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 engineering student 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 taken the effort, I attended the interview – but right away explained to my interviewer that I didn’t have a visa, so I was probably wasting her time.
As is common in NYC – a metropolis where anything feels possible – she responded: “We can make that happen. What's your start date?” I never got on that flight to London.
I was employed there for a trio of years. An advantage of the role was that I also received no-cost classes at Columbia, and I took advantage to complete a postgrad program in international relations.
I never saw that student again and I don’t even know his identity, but his remarkable generosity changed my life in multiple respects. I lacked the confidence or self-belief to reach out at an Ivy League university and ask for a job. And, I had long dreamed to take classes in another country, but lacked the financial means without that free tuition.
What's more, that gig at Columbia paved the way for a job in Zurich where I got to know my beautiful French husband, with whom I am raising a family of four kids. That encounter altered everything. That kind stranger changed my trajectory in life, and I’m eternally thankful.
What is the Nicest Thing a Someone You Didn't Know Has Shown for You?
From cheering you up to transforming your future, we are interested in chance encounters that have left a lasting impression.
Feel free to recount your experience if you are an adult, without revealing your identity if you choose. The stories you tell are protected, and are solely for the purpose of this feature.
