On Easter Sunday I had an elderly couple come in for dinner. They have had a lot of health issues. Having to pay for medication and physical therapy, they really don’t have a lot of money to treat themselves. They decided, on Easter Sunday, to treat themselves. When we told them that we were paying for their Easter dinner they were so happy and surprised.
Tired Dad
My RAK this week went to a clearly exhausted new father, who spent the better part of his meal walking his 10 week old daughter around the dining room in an attempt to lull her to sleep. Man, did I feel his pain or what?! After swapping war stories about our last couple weeks as new parents, I hooked him and his wife up with lunch, and gave them a GC for the next time they can have “adult time”. They were so happy, and are looking forward to paying the good deed forward, I can’t wait to see them again to see how they are doing.
Taking Care of the Caretakers
We had a party of 4 come in for lunch, Elizabeth, Josh, Sarah, & Brittany. Sarah is Elizabeth’s caretaker and Brittany is Josh’s caretaker. I hooked up Elizabeth and Josh’s lunch to do something special for them and make their experience all the better. Sarah and Brittany were very surprised and thanked me, because something like that never happens to them. And when I gave them the Pay It Forward certificate, they told me they had a very good idea who they were going to hook up and make their day.
College Bound
Tonight a family came in celebrating a trip to UVM that ended with a commitment and scholarship offer to their daughter Jennifer. I bought the family dinner as a congratulations, and they cannot wait to pay it forward!
Cancer in Remission
Today a couple, Barb & Rich Nardian, joined us for lunch and said they were celebrating. Come to find out that Rich had been undergoing treatment for cancer and found out today that it was in remission. We felt we should add onto the good feel of the day, so we RAKd their lunch. It came as a surprise to them, and they were very thankful for the opportunity to pay it forward.
90 + 1
Saturday we had a large party of 10 join us for lunch. In the party was Willie, a WWII vet celebrating his 90th birthday along with his great grand-daughter, Grace, who was celebrating her 1st. I took care of lunch for Willie and his wife, and got a heartfelt thank you along with a firm handshake from him as they all were leaving. His daughter then came back to talk to me after the party had left to say they really appreciated the gesture and looked forward to coming back, as we are the midway point for the family to get together.
Ruth & Rita Double Birthday
Last week, these nice ladies both came in to celebrate their birthdays. I remember them from my days when I first started at T-Bones, but hadn’t seen them in a long while. They always come in together and have the same thing, just like back in the day. When I found out their special event, I hooked them up with lunch.
Favor Returned
Last Week I RAK’d someone with a pretty cool story. Late one night a regular of ours fell asleep at the wheel, and drifted into a snow filled ditch. A gentleman, Paul, was driving by and offered assistance. He dug down to the back window, climbed in and pulled him out. As the ambulance arrived and he was about to be taken to the hospital, he handed Paul a large sum of cash he was on his way to deposit, worried that someone at the hospital might steal it. After info was exchanged, a few days later Paul sought out our regular (doesn’t want his named used, i promised i wouldn’t), and returned the money. Our regular treated him and his kids to lunch, but I bought it for everyone involved. They were all very happy, and will now make this meeting a monthly thing to keep in touch.
Two Kevins
Tonight I had the opportunity to seat a father and son for dinner, each with a set of physical challenges. They both ordered the same appetizer, and then both ordered the same entree. A hunch told me that this table would be a good RAK, so that’s what I did. When I bought their dinner and told them of our promotion, that’s when I found out they both are named Kevin. On the way out, dad stopped at the host stand to say that my act came at a very opportune time for many reasons, that he couldn’t thank me enough, and how much he was touched by the gesture. How awesome to make someone’s day!
Wallet Left Behind
My RAK went to a couple who forgot their wallet, and didn’t realize it until half way through their meal. They were very nice about it, offering to leave his phone, his wife’s car keys, and his wife herself. When I went over to tell them what we were doing for them, they were speechless, and almost refused to be given “charity”. When I explained paying it forward and keeping the good will going, they accepted having their dinner bought for them, and they will search high and low to pay it forward tomorrow afternoon after they find his wallet.