🔗 Share this article

In the late 1980s, I was embarking on a backpacking trip to the European continent with a companion. Because my travel mate was interested in starting a postgraduate program in New York, we had booked a 14-day stopover there en route to London.

We arrived at the graduate housing, a big ten-floor structure on the Manhattan's Upper West Side called International House. After dropping our bags, we headed straight to the canteen, where we picked up meals, found a table, and began chatting with people eating there.

Beside me was an Iraqi man enrolled in an engineering program at Columbia University. He inquired what I my profession was, and I told him that I had just graduated with a degree in science and had been working on studies with electron microscopy.

He mentioned that there was an research lab at the institution – adjacent to the engineering department, which was why he was aware of it. He suggested that I should apply for a position with them. I chuckled at the suggestion, telling him that I was soon departing to Europe and, more critically, I lacked a US visa.

A day later I toured the city, returning to the canteen that night. The man from Iraq approached me and let me know that he had arranged an interview 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 right away explained to my host that I lacked the necessary visa, so I was unable to accept the role.

As is common in NYC – a city where everything seems achievable – she responded: “We'll handle it. When can you start?” I didn't board the aircraft to London.

I worked there for a trio of years. An advantage of the role was that I was granted no-cost classes at Columbia, and I seized the chance 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 changed my life in so many ways. I didn't possess the courage or self-belief to reach out at an prestigious college and request employment. And, I had long dreamed to pursue education overseas, but wouldn't have been able to pay for it without that educational benefit.

Critically, that role at the university paved the way for a role in Europe where I encountered my handsome spouse from France, with whom I am raising four amazing children. This was a pivotal life event. That benevolent individual redirected my path in life, and I’m forever grateful.

Tell us about the Nicest Thing a Unknown Person Has Once Performed for You?

Whether it's making your day to transforming your future, we would love to know random meetings that have remained in your memory.

Feel free to recount your experience if you are an adult, anonymously if you choose. Your responses are secure, and will only be used the aim of this article.