Category Archive

A few months ago, a family that is  long time regular visitors of Derry, lost their middle son to suicide. One of our servers, Amber, dated their oldest son, Tommy for many many years so she was extremely close to the family as were nearly all our bartenders. The loss of Joey was tremendous to this family and spread deeply throughout our store. When they visited Christie could tell his Mom had been crying and asked if I could do something. We made it very casual as to not stir up what was was already weighing on her but I went over and said I wanted to make a kind guesture to make them smile and ask them to do something nice for someone completely random with the same idea. I let them know I was hoping to keep up RAK week moving forward and hope she will come in to tell me their story. I said keep it on you and save it for when you want to pay it forward. Maybe on a really hard day she will remember she can do something completely random just for the sake of it and it will bring her happiness. It can’t be easy finding ways to make you smile when you don’t want to

We had a family dining the other night that had dined for the first time with us. (lightbult perfect RAK table) I overheard them talking about how great their server was and injected myself into the conversation. The server happened to be very new and so I caught them on the way out by accident with a  RAK certificates. I let them know a little bit about our company’s community interests and our RAK program and asked them to keep the RAK week going with their pay it forward Certificate. I then invited them to come back and dine with us again and enjoy another meal with us in hopes of earning their regular status with our Derry Location so presented them with a Gift Certificate. We hope to see them soon

Happy Monday Happy National RAK Week   In honor of the first day of RAK week I chose the last guest in the lounge tonight. I recognized a guest I’ve seen many times but having not worked on the bar before I was not on a first name basis with this gentlemen. He’s always smiling, pleasant and engaging with the bartenders.  So I introduced myself and shared my excitement for celebrating a week that gives people a chance to do something nice for absolutely  no reason other than they can. He already has someone in mind that he thinks will be a worthy recipient of a RAK certificate to pay it forward and after some idle chit chat he thanked me for such an awesome way to end his night.  He was only in for a beer and  pizza and instead left with the excitement to do something nice for someone. He sought me out for one last thank you and to assure me He was going to make someone’s day. Happy RAK week. 6 more to come 🙂

The other day on my way out Tina approached me to let me know a couple was dining after just getting married. They came in to celebrate with a couple snacks and margaritas. As they finished up Tina and I joined them at the table to wish them well, many years of a happy marraige and to let them know we wanted to make their day a little more exciting. I picked up the food items on the check and presented them with a   $50 Gift Certificate so they could come back out to dinner and asked them for their first job as newleyweds to find someone to present a random act of kindness and pay it forward with one of our RAK GCs. The husband was super emotional and both were very grateful. They were really shocked we did such a thing and will be back to share their story of their RAK

We had a guest that came in for their anniversary and was asking what we did for Anniversaries as they were hoping for a little extra special something. They felt a little “off put” by the servers response so I went over to smooth things out. I explained the email club signup and that we have different promotions that come during anniversary months like the birthday coupon. So since they had a snowflake coupon they would not have been able to participate in those coupons regardless and that’s what the server was trying to convey but it came out with the guest feeling a little slighted unintentionally. I said we would love to make their night however and do a little something better than a coupon and I picked up their check. It wasn’t much as they wanted to share a meal (they thought it was cute :)) I had them each select a dessert and went to make it for them to take home. I packed it up for them, brought it over with a candle (her birthday had just passed) and gave them a Gift Certificate for the amount of the snowflake they had scratched. I wished them many more years together and told them go enjoy their cake – we had picked up tonight’s meal. She was overwhelmed and apologized for taking it the wrong way when the server tried to explain. We made their night and they left smiling ear to ear holding hands 🙂

So today I had a job shadow with a student from Pinkerton Academy. She was sitting with me logging the PFG order when she noticed an older woman sitting alone and felt for this lady. I told her she could go over and ask her if she wanted to join her for dessert and offer her something sweet. She was super apprehensive and nervous about how to go about it so despite my RAK this week already, I told her about our program and allowed her to approach with the RAK instead of alone without purpose. She was Mic’d up with me during the day so I encouraged her along the way as she finally walked over (I was watching on the camera) and sat down!! Amber, her server, came over and said the woman was beaming with happiness over someone to share her time. 40!!!! minutes later the student asked me to come over to the table and the woman told me how they had been talking…talking about how the world goes round, how the world is different now and how she can learn to live in it. She had woke up that day asking God for someone to share that with and here she was spending this time with this lovely young lady and how happy it made her. When she asked me for her server to bring the check I realized the student hadn’t even told her that part yet and let her know what we were doing for her and it just made the whole experience even more valuable. She thanked me and gave me some advice of my own as the young lady was actually my daughter 🙂 It was really awesome to watch it unfold and see how happy it made both people. Proud mama moment right here.    

**Warning** You may want to have tissues   Most people have felt the loss cancer can bring in some varying form. The onset can be the scariest part….not knowing if your prognosis is correct, not knowing if you will see your children grow up, or if you will grow old with your spouse. I can’t imagine experiencing  it on a first person level. I have only experienced the scare as it plagued my mother and father but both survived with aggressive surgeries and minimal long term effects. When Jessica approached me and shared she was just in a conversation with a guest about his families troubles, I couldn’t not react in some way to say we care deeply for your family and this most difficult time- what can we do… This gentlemen was dining with his wife. She was diagnosed with Stage 3 cancer. She is thankfully expected to live but you can see the cancer has taken the liveliness from her. What can be more heartbreaking than seeing your wife suffer through treatment? Your daughter being diagnosed a day apart with Stage 4 and not expected to make it. While the mother is suffering through her battle she and her husband have taken her daughter in with her kids and husband who is a marine and not home at all times. (I believe he is expected to take leave soon to be home through the next stages). The daughter is unable to eat, nor wishes to eat anything other than Mashed Potatoes preferably from here so we bought her all the mashed potatoes she will ever want. We took care of the couples tab and shared a card for them to give to their daughter with GCs in it attached to a note to recieve all the Mashed potatoes her heart desires. There is not a random act of kindness big enough to take the worry and pain away from this family but as they were leaving and sought me out to thank me, I knew that small guesture was greatly appreciated and when the mother smiled just a little bit with the sign of tears in her eyes I was grateful for the rush of a busy shift.