In the final years of the 1980s, I was embarking on a low-cost journey to the European continent with a friend. Because my travel mate was exploring pursuing a master’s degree in the Big Apple, we had planned a two-week stay there en route to London.
We got to the postgrad residence, a large 10-storey building on the Manhattan's Upper West Side known as International House. After dropping our bags, we made our way to the canteen, where we got some food, found a table, and started talking to people eating there.
Beside me was an gentleman from Iraq studying engineering at a prestigious New York university. He inquired what I did for a living, and I told him that I had recently completed my studies with a scientific background and had been working on studies with electron microscopy.
He mentioned that there was an microscopy facility at Columbia University – adjacent to the engineering faculty, which was why he was aware of it. He suggested that I consider applying for a job with them. I chuckled at the suggestion, saying that I was about to fly to Europe and, additionally, I lacked a US visa.
A day later I toured the city, coming back to the dining hall that evening. The Iraqi student walked over to me and let me know that he had organized a discussion for me with the leader of the research team at Columbia. Given that he had taken the effort, I showed up for the discussion – but immediately informed my interviewer that I was without a work permit, so I was probably wasting her time.
Reflecting the city's spirit – a metropolis where anything feels possible – she said: “We can make that happen. How soon can you begin?” I didn't board the aircraft to London.
I was employed there for three years. An advantage of the role was that I was granted no-cost classes 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 full name, but his selfless gesture changed my life in numerous aspects. I didn't possess the courage or nerve to reach out at an elite institution and ask for a job. And, I had consistently hoped to study abroad, but could never have afforded it without that tuition waiver.
Critically, that gig at Columbia paved the way for a job in Zurich where I got to know my beautiful French husband, with whom I am raising a family of four kids. It was a total sliding doors moment. That benevolent individual set me on a different course in life, and I’m eternally thankful.
What is the Kindest Gesture a Someone You Didn't Know Has Ever Done for You?
Whether it's brightening your mood to changing your life, we want to hear about unexpected interactions that have remained in your memory.
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