In the final years of the 1980s, I set out on a low-cost journey to the European continent with a travel partner. Because my friend was interested in starting a postgraduate program in the Big Apple, we had arranged a two-week stay there before heading to London.
We got to the graduate housing, a sizeable 10-storey building on the UWS called International House. After dropping our bags, we went directly to the canteen, where we picked up meals, sat down, and began chatting with other diners.
Sitting next to me was an Iraqi man studying engineering at Columbia University. He asked me what I did, and I told him that I had newly finished with a scientific background and had been working on studies using an electron microscope.
He pointed out that there was an electron microscope unit at the institution – right next door to the engineering faculty, which was why he was aware of it. He recommended that I consider applying for a role with them. I chuckled at the suggestion, explaining that I was heading off to Europe and, more critically, I lacked a US visa.
The following day I went out exploring, returning to the canteen that night. The Iraqi student walked over to me and let me know that he had set up a meeting for me with the leader of the research team at Columbia. Since he had gone to the trouble, I went to the meeting – but immediately informed my prospective employer that I didn’t have a visa, so I was likely not a suitable candidate.
In typical New York fashion – a city where everything seems achievable – she declared: “That can be arranged. When can you start?” I missed my plane to London.
I held that position for a trio of years. A perk of the job was that I got no-cost classes at Columbia, and I used the opportunity to finish a graduate degree in global studies.
We didn't cross paths after that and I am unaware of his identity, but his selfless gesture changed my life in multiple respects. I lacked the courage or self-assurance to reach out at an elite institution and request employment. Additionally, I had long dreamed to study abroad, but could never have afforded it without that free tuition.
Perhaps most importantly, that role at the university led me to a job in Zurich where I met my beautiful French husband, with whom I currently share four amazing children. That encounter altered everything. That kind stranger redirected my path in life, and I’m always appreciative.
Can you recall the Most Generous Act a Stranger Has Shown for You?
Whether it's cheering you up to transforming your future, we would love to know random meetings that have remained in your memory.
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