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During the closing decade of the 80s, I set out on a low-cost journey to the European continent with a friend. Since my travel mate was exploring starting a postgraduate program in NYC, we had arranged a two-week stay there before heading to London.

We reached the graduate housing, a big ten-floor structure on the Manhattan's Upper West Side known as International House. Once we unpacked, we made our way to the cafeteria, where we picked up meals, took a seat, and engaged in conversation with other diners.

Adjacent to my seat was an Iraqi man pursuing an engineering degree at Columbia University. He inquired what I did, and I explained that I had just graduated with a scientific background and had been working on studies involving microscopic analysis.

He mentioned that there was an electron microscope unit at the university – adjacent to the engineering department, which was why he was aware of it. He suggested that I should apply for a role with them. I dismissed the idea, telling him that I was soon departing to Europe and, additionally, I didn’t have a US visa.

A day later I toured the city, returning to the canteen that evening. The man from Iraq came up to me and told me that he had organized a discussion for me with the leader of the research team at Columbia. Given that he had gone to the trouble, I attended the interview – but immediately informed my prospective employer that I was without a work permit, so I was probably wasting her time.

In typical New York fashion – a metropolis where anything feels possible – she declared: “We can make that happen. How soon can you begin?” I didn't board the aircraft to London.

I was employed there for a trio of years. An advantage of the role was that I also received no-cost classes at Columbia, and I took advantage to earn a graduate degree in global studies.

I lost touch with him and I am unaware of his name, but his remarkable generosity transformed my future in numerous aspects. I lacked the courage or self-belief to reach out at an Ivy League university and seek a position. Additionally, I had long dreamed to pursue education overseas, but lacked the financial means without that tuition waiver.

Critically, that job in New York resulted in a job in Zurich where I got to know my wonderful partner, with whom I am raising a family of four kids. This was a pivotal life event. That benevolent individual changed my trajectory in life, and I’m forever grateful.

Can you recall the Nicest Thing a Unknown Person Has Once Performed for You?

Whether it's cheering you up to changing your life, we are interested in random meetings that have remained in your memory.

Please share your story if you are of legal age, anonymously if you choose. Your responses are confidential, and are intended for the aim of this article.