In the final years of the 1980s, I set out on a low-cost journey to the European continent with a companion. Because my friend was interested in starting a postgraduate program in NYC, we had arranged a two-week stay there on the way to London.
We got to the student accommodation, a large multi-story edifice on the Manhattan's Upper West Side named International House. Setting down our luggage, we headed straight to the dining hall, where we picked up meals, found a table, and began chatting with other diners.
Beside me was an individual of Iraqi origin studying engineering at a prestigious New York university. He wanted to know what I did, and I shared that I had recently completed my studies with a scientific background and had been working on studies using an electron microscope.
He pointed out that there was an microscopy facility at the university – right next door to the engineering faculty, which was the reason he was familiar with it. He recommended that I should apply for a role with them. I chuckled at the suggestion, explaining that I was soon departing to Europe and, even more importantly, I didn’t have a US visa.
The following day I went out exploring, going back to the cafeteria that night. The engineering student approached me and informed me that he had organized a discussion for me with the head of the electron microscope unit at Columbia. Given that he had gone to the trouble, I attended the interview – but immediately told my prospective employer that I didn’t have a visa, so I was likely not a suitable candidate.
In typical New York fashion – a place where anything feels possible – she declared: “That can be arranged. What's your start date?” I never got on that flight to London.
I held that position for three years. An advantage of the role was that I got free tuition at Columbia, and I used the opportunity to complete a master’s of international affairs.
I lost touch with him and I am unaware of his identity, but his remarkable generosity altered my destiny in so many ways. I would never have had the bravery or self-assurance to reach out at an Ivy League university and ask for a job. And, I had always wanted to study abroad, but lacked the financial means without that tuition waiver.
Perhaps most importantly, that job in New York resulted in a position in Switzerland where I encountered my beautiful French husband, with whom I currently share a family of four kids. That encounter altered everything. That benevolent individual redirected my path in life, and I’m eternally thankful.
Can you recall the Most Generous Act a Unknown Person Has Ever Done for You?
From cheering you up to altering your path, we are interested in unexpected interactions that have left a lasting impression.
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