Waffle House waitress surprised with scholarship after customer captures her act of kindness
After Adrien Charpentier had surgery, his hands were giving him trouble, and the 78-year-old asked his waitress at the La Marque, Texas, Waffle House if she'd help him by cutting his food.
Evoni Williams, 18, thought only Charpentier was watching as she assisted him, but diner Laura Wolf had her eyes on the pair, and she took a photo of the act of kindness, posting it on her Facebook page. "It was so busy in here and she actually took the time to stop and hear what he had to say, instead of walking past him," she told KHOU. "That just meant something to me."
The photo went viral online, with thousands of people seeing it — including officials at the city of La Marque. They surprised Williams by coming to her work, proclaiming it Evoni Nene Williams Day, and notifying her that she was receiving a $16,000 scholarship to Texas Southern University. Williams works at the Waffle House in order to pay for college, and she is grateful for being recognized for doing the right thing. "It's something I'd do any other day," she said. Catherine Garcia
The Week
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Catherine Garcia has worked as a senior writer at The Week since 2014. Her writing and reporting have appeared in Entertainment Weekly, The New York Times, Wirecutter, NBC News and "The Book of Jezebel," among others. She's a graduate of the University of Redlands and the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism.
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