An Kindness of People We Don't Know: How a Person I Had Just Met Assisted Me Obtain the Position That Altered My Path

During the closing decade of the 80s, I was embarking on a budget travel adventure to the European continent with a travel partner. Since my companion was interested in pursuing a master’s degree in NYC, we had arranged a two-week stay there en route to London.

We reached the student accommodation, a large multi-story edifice on the Upper West Side called International House. After dropping our bags, we headed straight to the dining hall, where we got some food, found a table, and began chatting with people eating there.

Beside me was an Iraqi man enrolled in an engineering program at an Ivy League institution. He asked me what I did for a living, and I told him that I had newly finished with a science degree and had been working on studies with electron microscopy.

He pointed out that there was an electron microscope unit at Columbia University – right next door to the school of engineering, which was why he was aware of it. He suggested 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 didn’t have a US visa.

The following day I toured the city, returning to the canteen that night. The engineering student came up to me and told me that he had set up a meeting for me with the head of the electron microscope unit at Columbia. Given that he had made the arrangement, I showed up for the discussion – but immediately explained to my interviewer that I didn’t have a visa, so I was probably wasting her time.

As is common in NYC – a place where opportunities abound – she said: “We can make that happen. What's your start date?” I missed my plane to London.

I was employed there for three years. One of the benefits was that I also received no-cost classes at Columbia, and I used the opportunity to complete a graduate degree in global studies.

I never saw that student again and I don’t even know his name, but his incredible act of kindness transformed my future in numerous aspects. I didn't possess the courage or self-belief to contact anyone at an elite institution and ask for a job. And, I had consistently hoped to study abroad, but lacked the financial means without that tuition waiver.

Perhaps most importantly, that role at the university resulted in a role in Europe where I met my wonderful partner, with whom I am raising four amazing children. That encounter altered everything. That kind stranger set me on a different course in life, and I’m always appreciative.

Tell us about the Kindest Gesture a Stranger Has Ever Done for You?

Whether it's making your day to transforming your future, we want to hear about random meetings that have left a lasting impression.

We invite you to tell us if you are of legal age, without revealing your identity if you choose. What you share are secure, and are intended for the aim of this article.