During the closing decade of the 80s, I was embarking on a backpacking trip to the European continent with a companion. Since my travel mate was exploring enrolling in graduate studies in New York, we had planned a two-week stay there en route to London.
We reached the graduate housing, a big ten-floor structure on the Upper West Side called International House. Once we unpacked, we made our way to the cafeteria, where we grabbed food, sat down, and began chatting with other diners.
Beside me was an Iraqi man studying engineering at an Ivy League institution. He inquired what I did for a living, and I shared that I had recently completed my studies with a degree in science and had been working on studies involving microscopic analysis.
He pointed out that there was an research lab at the university – adjacent to the school of engineering, which was why he was aware of it. He proposed that I should apply for a position with them. I dismissed the idea, telling him that I was soon departing to Europe and, more critically, I did not possess a US visa.
The next day I toured the city, coming back to the dining hall that night. The man from Iraq approached me and told 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 attended the interview – but right away explained to my interviewer that I was without a work permit, so I was probably wasting her time.
In typical New York fashion – a metropolis where everything seems achievable – she responded: “That can be arranged. When can you start?” I never got on that flight to London.
I held that position 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 complete a postgrad program in international relations.
We didn't cross paths after that and I don’t even know his name, but his selfless gesture changed my life in multiple respects. I lacked the bravery or self-belief to contact anyone at an Ivy League university and request employment. And, I had consistently hoped to study abroad, but wouldn't have been able to pay for it without that tuition waiver.
What's more, that role at the university led me to a position in Switzerland where I got to know my handsome spouse from France, with whom I currently share four amazing children. That encounter altered everything. That benevolent individual redirected my path in life, and I’m always appreciative.
Can you recall the Nicest Thing a Someone You Didn't Know Has Ever Done for You?
From cheering you up to transforming your future, we are interested in chance encounters that have stuck with you.
Feel free to recount your experience if you are of legal age, without revealing your identity if you wish. Your responses are confidential, and are solely for the purpose of this feature.
