Working overnight at midnight isn’t a lot of fun. It’s one of the slowest parts of the day at many places open 24/7. But sometimes, workers are surprised to come across certain situations that can change the rest of their lives.
Liz Woodward was working her midnight shift at the 130 Diner in Delran, New Jersey when at about 5 AM, she saw two firefighters who came in to grab a bite to eat. While taking their order, one of the men requested their “biggest” cup of coffee. It was apparent that both men looked absolutely exhausted.
She knew they were probably members of the firefighter team who fought a nearby warehouse fire in North Brunswick. The fire was the biggest the town had ever seen.
While her night might have felt like an eternity, Liz knew that these men had been through a lot worse!
One of the firefighters, Tim Young, later posted on his Facebook page:
“After 12 hours fighting the fire and supplying water, he hadn’t eaten so I took him out for breakfast to the route 130 diner in Delran.”
There was no doubt he definitely needed that coffee, and Liz was more than happy to make it for him. However, what they didn’t know was that the server would do a lot more than just serve them coffee.
When the men requested their bill, they were surprised when they saw the heartwarming note Liz left on the bill. It read:
“Your breakfast is on me today – Thank you for all that you do; for serving others & for running into the places everyone else runs away from.”
Liz’s generosity surprised the two men. What they didn’t know was that Liz overheard everything and wished to take care of their bill as a show of appreciation for their brave service to her community.
Tim was so moved by the server’s kind gesture that he decided to share her good deed on social media. Before they knew it, the post had gone viral!
Tim and Paul soon learned that Liz was in need of help. After she’d shown them such kindness, they felt compelled to do what they could to help her out. The two firefighters learned that Liz began a GoFundMe campaign a year ago for her dad, Steve, who suffered a rupturing brain aneurysm.
They hoped that sharing the page would attract more donations.
Due to his condition, Steve is now a quadriplegic. His health has made it tough for family members to transport him, especially when they need to take him to doctor’s appointments. Their vehicles are not designed for Steve’s needs. What they needed was a custom vehicle, like an accessible wheelchair van.
And after the firefighters’ post went viral, more people began to donate to Liz’s GoFundMe page. In fact, news of her story reached Mobility Ventures LLC, a well-known manufacturer of customized vehicles.
That’s when a miracle happened. The company decided to donate an MV-1 van to Steve!
The GoFundMe money they collected would then be used for Steve’s medical expenses. The campaign’s original goal was $17,000, but they managed to reach $86,500!
Liz and her family could not believe how her simple act of kindness began a chain of positive events. And for the young server, she just did something to show her appreciation of what these brave firefighters do for everyone, never expecting anything in return.
You can watch a video about this heartwarming story below.
Thanks for reading. Please be so kind as to pass this story along to your friends and family?
Sources:
- “Server Leaves A Heartfelt Note On A Firefighter’s Bill And It Changed Everything”Jumble Joy.