In the late 1980s, I was embarking on a low-cost journey to Europe with a friend. Since my friend was considering pursuing a master’s degree in the Big Apple, we had planned a 14-day stopover there en route to London.
We got to the student accommodation, a large multi-story edifice on the Upper West Side called International House. Setting down our luggage, we went directly to the canteen, where we got some food, sat down, and started talking to other diners.
Adjacent to my seat was an individual of Iraqi origin enrolled in an engineering program at Columbia University. He wanted to know what I my profession was, and I told him that I had recently completed my studies with a degree in science and had been conducting research using an electron microscope.
He noted that there was an research lab at the university – close to the engineering department, which was how he knew about it. He recommended that I consider applying for a role with them. I dismissed the idea, telling him that I was soon departing to Europe and, more critically, I lacked a US visa.
The next day I went out exploring, going back to the cafeteria that after dark. The engineering student came up to me and informed me that he had organized a discussion for me with the head of the electron microscope unit at Columbia. Since he had gone to the trouble, I attended the interview – but right away told my prospective employer that I didn’t have a visa, so I was likely not a suitable candidate.
Reflecting the city's spirit – a city where anything feels possible – she said: “That can be arranged. When can you start?” I missed my plane to London.
I was employed there for three years. One of the benefits was that I got free tuition at Columbia, and I took advantage to complete a master’s of international affairs.
I never saw that student again and I don’t even know his identity, but his remarkable generosity transformed my future in so many ways. I would never have had the confidence or self-assurance to contact anyone at an Ivy League university and request employment. And, I had consistently hoped to pursue education overseas, but lacked the financial means without that free tuition.
What's more, that gig at Columbia paved the way for a job in Zurich where I encountered my beautiful French husband, with whom I am raising a family of four kids. That encounter altered everything. That kind stranger set me on a different course in life, and I’m forever grateful.
What is the Most Generous Act a Stranger Has Once Performed for You?
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