During the late 1980s, I set out on a backpacking trip to the European continent with a travel partner. Because my travel mate was exploring enrolling in graduate studies in NYC, we had booked a 14-day stopover there en route to London.
We arrived at the postgrad residence, a large 10-storey building on the Upper West Side called International House. Once we unpacked, we headed straight to the canteen, where we picked up meals, took a seat, and started talking to people eating there.
Adjacent to my seat was an Iraqi man enrolled in an engineering program at an Ivy League institution. He asked me what I did, and I told him that I had recently completed my studies with a degree in science and had been working on studies with electron microscopy.
He pointed out that there was an microscopy facility at Columbia University – right next door to the school of engineering, which was why he was aware of it. He recommended that I consider applying for a job with them. I laughed it off, explaining that I was soon departing to Europe and, additionally, I lacked a US visa.
A day later I ventured out, coming back to the dining hall that night. The engineering student walked over to me and let me know that he had set up a meeting for me with the head of the electron microscope unit at Columbia. Given that he had taken the effort, I showed up for the discussion – but straight off explained to my host that I was without a work permit, so I was probably wasting her time.
As is common in NYC – a place where opportunities abound – she declared: “We can make that happen. What's your start date?” I never got on that flight to London.
I was employed there for 36 months. One of the benefits was that I was granted free tuition at Columbia, and I took advantage to earn a graduate degree in global studies.
We didn't cross paths after that and I don’t even know his full name, but his incredible act of kindness changed my life in so many ways. I would never have had the confidence or self-assurance to contact anyone at an prestigious college and seek a position. Additionally, I had always wanted to study abroad, but wouldn't have been able to pay for it without that tuition waiver.
Perhaps most importantly, that job in New York paved the way for a job in Zurich where I met my beautiful French husband, with whom I am raising four wonderful sons and daughters. It was a total sliding doors moment. That benevolent individual set me on a different course in life, and I’m always appreciative.
Can you recall the Nicest Thing a Unknown Person Has Once Performed for You?
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