The Compassion of People We Don't Know: How a Man I Barely Knew Supported Me Land the Position That Transformed My Existence

In the final years of the 1980s, I was embarking on a low-cost journey to Europe with a companion. Because my friend was considering starting a postgraduate program in NYC, we had booked a two-week stay there before heading to London.

We arrived at the graduate housing, a sizeable multi-story edifice on the Upper West Side named International House. After dropping our bags, we headed straight to the canteen, where we grabbed food, found a table, and started talking to fellow residents.

Beside me was an gentleman from Iraq enrolled in an engineering program at Columbia University. He asked me what I did for a living, and I explained that I had newly finished with a science degree and had been conducting research with electron microscopy.

He mentioned that there was an research lab at Columbia University – adjacent to the engineering department, which was the reason he was familiar with it. He proposed that I ought to seek a position with them. I chuckled at the suggestion, explaining that I was soon departing to Europe and, more critically, I lacked a US visa.

The next day I ventured out, returning to the canteen that evening. The engineering student approached me and let me know that he had arranged an interview for me with the head of the electron microscope unit at Columbia. Because he had gone to the trouble, I attended the interview – but immediately explained to my host that I didn’t have a visa, so I was likely not a suitable candidate.

In typical New York fashion – a city where opportunities abound – she declared: “We can make that happen. What's your start date?” I missed my plane to London.

I held that position for 36 months. A perk of the job was that I got no-cost classes at Columbia, and I seized the chance to finish a master’s of international affairs.

I lost touch with him and I don’t even know his name, but his selfless gesture altered my destiny in so many ways. I would never have had the courage or self-assurance to approach someone at an elite institution and request employment. Additionally, I had always wanted to study abroad, but could never have afforded it without that educational benefit.

What's more, that job in New York led me to a job in Zurich where I met my wonderful partner, with whom I currently share four amazing children. That encounter altered everything. That kind stranger set me on a different course in life, and I’m eternally thankful.

What is the Most Generous Act a Stranger Has Once Performed for You?

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