During the final years of the 1980s, I was beginning a backpacking trip to the European continent with a friend. Because my friend was exploring starting a postgraduate program in New York, we had arranged a two-week stay there en route to London.
We arrived at the graduate housing, a sizeable multi-story edifice on the UWS named International House. Once we unpacked, we went directly to the dining hall, where we got some food, took a seat, and started talking to fellow residents.
Beside me was an gentleman from Iraq enrolled in an engineering program at an Ivy League institution. He asked me what I did for a living, and I shared that I had recently completed my studies with a science degree and had been performing experiments with electron microscopy.
He mentioned that there was an electron microscope unit at Columbia University – close to the engineering department, which was how he knew about it. He proposed that I consider applying for a position with them. I dismissed the idea, saying that I was soon departing to Europe and, even more importantly, I didn’t have a US visa.
The following day I ventured out, returning to the canteen that night. The man from Iraq walked over to me and informed me that he had set up a meeting for me with the director of the microscopy lab at Columbia. Since he had taken the effort, I went to the meeting – but right away told my interviewer that I lacked the necessary visa, so I was probably wasting her time.
Reflecting the city's spirit – a metropolis where anything feels possible – she responded: “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. A perk of the job was that I was granted complimentary education at Columbia, and I seized the chance to finish a graduate degree in global studies.
We didn't cross paths after that and I don’t even know his name, but his selfless gesture altered my destiny in multiple respects. I lacked the bravery or self-assurance to contact anyone at an elite institution and request employment. Moreover, I had consistently hoped to pursue education overseas, but could never have afforded it without that tuition waiver.
Perhaps most importantly, that job in New York paved the way for a job in Zurich where I encountered my handsome spouse from France, with whom I currently share four amazing children. It was a total sliding doors moment. That benevolent individual redirected my path in life, and I’m eternally thankful.
Tell us about the Nicest Thing a Someone You Didn't Know Has Once Performed for You?
Whether it's brightening your mood to transforming your future, we are interested in random meetings that have left a lasting impression.
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