Chastity Rodriguez was working her routine shift as a waitress at a Luby's in Texas, when a woman came in and made that particular shift unforgettable.
The unassuming woman came into the restaurant wearing a baseball cap, when she ordered a tray of pinto beans, yams and cornbread, which totaled $9.
Rodriguez checked up on her several times, offering her refills and a to-go cup. There were several coins already on the table, and Rodriguez assumed they made up her tip.
When the woman left the restaurant, she left an envelope on her table with Rodriguez's name written on it. Rodriguez took it to the back to open it, and she found a typed note that read, "This is for you in your time of need. God bless you," along with $1000 in cash.
"I fell to my knees and started crying," Rodriguez said. "I couldn't believe it."
Rodriguez, who cares for her 8-year-old granddaughter, said the tip could not have come at a better time. Before that day, she was not sure how she was going to pay for her bills that month.
"I've been praying a lot," Rodriguez said. "We've been going through a lot of things. This really helped out."
She never found out who the mystery woman was, but she is forever grateful for her act of kindness and says this experience reminded her to never lose faith.
"That was just a real blessing," Rodriguez said. "I want to say thank you to whoever you are out there. It was very needed and appreciated."
Rodriguez isn't the first waitress to receive a shocking tip. Another waitress, Aysha Lawson, was working at a Salt 88 in Omaha, Nebraska, when she received a $1000 tip from a mystery woman. When she showed it to her boss, he simply responded, "you deserve it."
Lawson said this experience gave her some perspective.
"A lot of people feel like you do [service jobs] because you don't have a path in life, and there was this moment where I thought, maybe there are people who really appreciate what you do and see value in it," Lawson said.
Next time you go to a restaurant, be sure to let the workers know you appreciate them.
