In the closing decade of the 80s, I was embarking on a budget travel adventure to the European continent with a friend. Since my travel mate was interested in starting a postgraduate program in the Big Apple, we had arranged a two-week stay there on the way to London.
We arrived at the graduate housing, a large multi-story edifice on the UWS called International House. Setting down our luggage, we went directly to the cafeteria, where we got some food, sat down, and started talking to fellow residents.
Sitting next to me was an individual of Iraqi origin enrolled in an engineering program at a prestigious New York university. He asked me what I did for a living, and I shared that I had just graduated with a scientific background and had been conducting research involving microscopic analysis.
He mentioned that there was an research lab at the institution – right next door to the engineering department, which was how he knew about it. He proposed that I consider applying for a position with them. I laughed it off, telling him that I was soon departing to Europe and, more critically, I didn’t have a US visa.
The next day I toured the city, coming back to the dining hall that evening. The man from Iraq walked over to me and informed me that he had arranged an interview for me with the leader of the research team at Columbia. Since he had taken the effort, I showed up for the discussion – but immediately told my interviewer that I was without a work permit, so I was probably wasting her time.
In typical New York fashion – a metropolis where opportunities abound – she declared: “That can be arranged. How soon can you begin?” I missed my plane to London.
I was employed there for 36 months. A perk of the job was that I was granted complimentary education at Columbia, and I seized the chance to earn a graduate degree in global studies.
I never saw that student again and I don’t even know his full name, but his remarkable generosity altered my destiny in multiple respects. I didn't possess the confidence or nerve to reach out at an elite institution and ask for a job. And, I had long dreamed to study abroad, but could never have afforded it without that free tuition.
What's more, that role at the university paved the way for a job in Zurich where I got to know my wonderful partner, with whom I now have a family of four kids. This was a pivotal life event. That benevolent individual redirected my path in life, and I’m forever grateful.
Tell us about the Most Generous Act a Stranger Has Once Performed for You?
From cheering you up to transforming your future, we would love to know chance encounters that have stuck with you.
We invite you to tell us if you are 18 or over, anonymously if you choose. The stories you tell are confidential, and will only be used the purpose of this feature.
