VIRGINIA BEACH, Va. (WAVY) — One group of friends plans to pitch in for one big surprise tip at a restaurant every year. Their tip for the 2023 holiday season is their biggest one yet.
Marie Boyd became a waitress in between jobs earlier this year, and said it has been a rough 2023. She is a single mom with three kids.
“I kind of lost myself and I became very depressed,” Boyd said.
In the spirit of giving, her friend Courtney Zawisa convinced more than 20 other people to order food and all pitch in a $100 tip.
“I was so excited the whole time,” Zawisa said.
In a social media video of the surprise tip, Boyd is seen fighting back tears. She hugged everyone involved with the gift. 10 On Your Side asked Boyd what was going through her mind when she got the gift.
“I was more worried that I was in the middle of putting in a bunch of orders and the computer timed out like right before, and I had to redo back and put them all in,” she said with a laugh. “That’s really what I was thinking.”
Combined with gifts from the people who couldn’t make it, the grand total was more than $2,500.
Boyd said that goes a long way, and will help pay January’s rent as well as presents for her kids.
“When they opened the card and I actually saw it, it was like, ‘OK it’s real,'” Boyd said. “You see this on TV, you see this on TikTok, this and that, but it doesn’t happen to people … It was surreal.”
They hope this inspires others to carry out similar acts of kindness.
“She’s a hard worker, she’s a great parent and a really really good friend,” Roger Schafer said.
Marie said she is still looking for a new full-time, but added that 2024 is off to a great start.
“It doesn’t take a lot,” Michael Strader said. “It doesn’t take many, it doesn’t take much. It just takes a small dedicated community, group of people.”
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