During the final years of the 1980s, I set out on a low-cost journey to the European continent with a companion. Because my travel mate was interested in starting a postgraduate program in NYC, we had booked a two-week stay there before heading to London.
We reached the postgrad residence, a large 10-storey building on the Upper West Side named International House. After dropping our bags, we made our way to the canteen, where we picked up meals, took a seat, and engaged in conversation with people eating there.
Sitting next to me was an Iraqi man pursuing an engineering degree at a prestigious New York university. He wanted to know what I did for a living, and I told him that I had newly finished with a scientific background and had been conducting research using an electron microscope.
He mentioned that there was an microscopy facility at the institution – adjacent to the engineering faculty, which was the reason he was familiar with it. He proposed that I consider applying for a job with them. I laughed it off, explaining that I was about to fly to Europe and, even more importantly, I did not possess a US visa.
A day later I ventured out, returning to the canteen that night. The Iraqi student came up to me and let me know that he had arranged an interview for me with the director of the microscopy lab at Columbia. Because he had made the arrangement, I showed up for the discussion – but immediately told my prospective employer that I didn’t have a visa, so I was likely not a suitable candidate.
As is common in NYC – a city where opportunities abound – she said: “That can be arranged. When can you start?” I didn't board the aircraft to London.
I was employed there for a trio of years. An advantage of the role was that I was granted no-cost classes at Columbia, and I took advantage to earn a master’s of international affairs.
I never saw that student again and I don’t even know his name, but his selfless gesture altered my destiny in so many ways. I lacked the courage or self-belief to contact anyone at an prestigious college and seek a position. Moreover, I had long dreamed to study abroad, but could never have afforded it without that educational benefit.
Critically, that role at the university resulted in a job in Zurich where I got to know my beautiful French husband, with whom I now have four wonderful sons and daughters. That encounter altered everything. That benevolent individual changed my trajectory in life, and I’m eternally thankful.
Can you recall the Nicest Thing a Stranger Has Ever Done for You?
From making your day to transforming your future, we are interested in chance encounters that have stuck with you.
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