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During the final years of the 1980s, I was beginning a budget travel adventure to the European continent with a travel partner. Since my friend was exploring pursuing a master’s degree in New York, we had arranged a 14-day stopover there before heading to London.

We reached the postgrad residence, a big ten-floor structure on the Manhattan's Upper West Side called International House. Once we unpacked, we headed straight to the canteen, where we grabbed food, found a table, and started talking to other diners.

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

He mentioned that there was an microscopy facility at the university – adjacent to the engineering faculty, which was how he knew about it. He recommended that I consider applying for a position with them. I chuckled at the suggestion, telling him that I was heading off to Europe and, additionally, I didn’t have a US visa.

A day later I toured the city, coming back to the dining hall that evening. The Iraqi student approached me and let me know that he had organized a discussion for me with the leader of the research team at Columbia. Because he had made the arrangement, I attended the interview – but immediately told my prospective employer that I was without a work permit, so I was likely not a suitable candidate.

Reflecting the city's spirit – a metropolis where everything seems achievable – she declared: “We'll handle it. What's your start date?” I missed my plane to London.

I worked there for a trio of years. A perk of the job was that I got no-cost classes at Columbia, and I seized the chance to complete a master’s of international affairs.

I never saw that student again and I can't recall his identity, but his remarkable generosity transformed my future in so many ways. I lacked the confidence or self-belief to approach someone at an prestigious college and request employment. Additionally, I had long dreamed to study abroad, but lacked the financial means without that free tuition.

Critically, that role at the university resulted in a job in Zurich where I met my wonderful partner, with whom I now have four amazing children. That encounter altered everything. That benevolent individual changed my trajectory in life, and I’m forever grateful.

Can you recall the Most Generous Act a Stranger Has Ever Done for You?

Whether it's cheering you up to transforming your future, we want to hear about unexpected interactions that have stuck with you.

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