During the final years of the 1980s, I was embarking on a backpacking trip to the European continent with a friend. Since my friend was considering starting a postgraduate program in the Big Apple, we had booked a two-week stay there on the way to London.
We arrived at the postgrad residence, a big 10-storey building on the Upper West Side known as International House. After dropping our bags, we headed straight to the cafeteria, where we picked up meals, took a seat, and started talking to people eating there.
Adjacent to my seat was an gentleman from Iraq enrolled in an engineering program at a prestigious New York university. He asked me what I my profession was, and I explained that I had recently completed my studies with a scientific background and had been performing experiments involving microscopic analysis.
He noted that there was an microscopy facility at the institution – close to the engineering faculty, which was how he knew about it. He proposed that I should apply for a job with them. I chuckled at the suggestion, explaining that I was heading off to Europe and, more critically, I lacked a US visa.
The next day I went out exploring, returning to the canteen that night. The engineering student came up 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. Because he had taken the effort, I went to the meeting – but immediately informed my host 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 three years. A perk of the job was that I was granted no-cost classes at Columbia, and I used the opportunity to finish a master’s of international affairs.
I never saw that student again and I am unaware of his name, but his remarkable generosity altered my destiny in multiple respects. I lacked the confidence or self-belief to reach out at an prestigious college and seek a position. Moreover, I had always wanted to take classes in another country, but could never have afforded it without that educational benefit.
What's more, that job in New York paved the way for a job in Zurich where I encountered my wonderful partner, with whom I currently share a family of four kids. This was a pivotal life event. That benevolent individual changed my trajectory in life, and I’m forever grateful.
What is the Most Generous Act a Unknown Person Has Shown for You?
From cheering you up to transforming your future, we are interested in random meetings that have left a lasting impression.
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