Waffle House Waitress Picks Up Shift For Extra Cash, Man’s Tip Leaves Her ‘Sick’

A waitress from Kingsport, Tennessee, was left speechless after receiving a $600 tip from a customer.

Lauren Ball had just finished paying for her 2-year-old son’s birthday party and was getting ready to leave for a vacation with her father when she decided to work one last shift at Waffle House to make as much money as possible.

On that particular night, Ball hoped to make $60. At one point during her shift, she took a smoke break and wound up talking to one of two customers she had served inside. In the restaurant, she joked with the two men about Harry Potter and the conversation continued outside with one of them. 

While outside, the man informed her that his friend planned to give her a $200 or $300 tip. Ball said she didn’t believe it until the other man came outside and showed his friend the tip he left. In that moment, a cook ran outside and asked the customers if the tip they left was real. It was then that Ball went inside and discovered a $600 tip just for her. 

“It took my breath away,” she told the Kingsport Times-News. “It made me sick to my stomach, but in a good way.”

After seeing the tip, Ball ran outside and hugged the generous man, asking him why he did what he did. His response was simply that he enjoyed doing nice things for people.

“I told him he was an angel,” Ball said. 

Some readers criticized Ball for smoking, especially when she had money troubles.

“The story clearly states that, ‘she went out to smoke.'” one Mad World News reader commented on the site’s Facebook page. “If she can afford to smoke, then I would NEVER have given her more than a minimum standard tip. I will not support people’s stupid unnecessary ‘habits.'”

“This story stinks,” another wrote. “If this woman is so low on money then she should 1) give love and a birthday present to the child instead of throwing a party 2) not go on vacation 3) quit smoking – cigarettes are expensive 4) help herself and stop looking to others for pity.”

Others expressed sympathy for the woman and understanding for her and her situation.

“She didn’t ask for a handout, she was simply blessed by someone who had the means to do something nice for her,” one reader commented. “I am a single mom of 2 and times can get really hard it doesn’t mean that because i have a hard time that my children should have to go without a birthday party.”

“They are only little once and no matter how hard times get or how tight money is a mother still wants to be able to do everything they can for their kids. Instead of downing this mother you should be thinking of what an amazing woman she is by raising a child on her own with no help from the father and is also going back to school, until you have walked in her shoes who are yo to judge???”

Sources: Kingsport Times-News, Mad World News/Facebook / Photo credit: Fastily/Wikimedia Commons