🔗 Share this article

In the late 1980s, I was embarking on a budget travel adventure to the European continent with a companion. Because my friend was considering starting a postgraduate program in the Big Apple, we had booked a 14-day stopover there before heading to London.

We got to the postgrad residence, a big 10-storey building on the UWS known as International House. After dropping our bags, we headed straight to the dining hall, where we got some food, took a seat, and began chatting with people eating there.

Adjacent to my seat was an individual of Iraqi origin pursuing an engineering degree at Columbia University. He inquired what I did, and I explained that I had just graduated with a science degree and had been working on studies with electron microscopy.

He mentioned that there was an microscopy facility at the institution – right next door to the engineering faculty, which was why he was aware of it. He recommended that I should apply for a position with them. I chuckled at the suggestion, explaining that I was about to fly to Europe and, even more importantly, I didn’t have a US visa.

A day later I went out exploring, coming back to the dining hall that after dark. The Iraqi 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. Since he had taken the effort, I attended the interview – but right away told my interviewer that I didn’t have a visa, so I was likely not a suitable candidate.

In typical New York fashion – a metropolis where anything feels possible – she said: “That can be arranged. How soon can you begin?” I missed my plane to London.

I was employed there for three years. One of the benefits was that I was granted complimentary education at Columbia, and I seized the chance to earn a graduate degree in global studies.

I never saw that student again and I am unaware of his name, but his incredible act of kindness changed my life in so many ways. I lacked the courage or self-belief to reach out at an Ivy League university and request employment. And, I had long dreamed to pursue education overseas, but could never have afforded it without that free tuition.

What's more, that gig at Columbia led me to a position in Switzerland where I got to know my handsome spouse from France, with whom I now have a family of four kids. This was a pivotal life event. That helpful person changed my trajectory in life, and I’m forever grateful.

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

Whether it's making your day to changing your life, we would love to know random meetings that have left a lasting impression.

Feel free to recount your experience if you are 18 or over, keeping your details private if you choose. The stories you tell are protected, and are solely for the goal of sharing inspiring stories.