Local waitress receives $1,300 tip from a group of strangers
UNION GROVE, Wis. (CBS 58) – A local waitress had one more reason to smile and it came in the form of a very generous tip.
Michele Bachmann, 57, started her shift at Mulberry’s Pancakes and Café like any other day the morning of Sunday, Dec. 22.
Bachmann has worked at the restaurant for a little over a year.
“I absolutely love it,” says Bachmann. “It’s an amazing restaurant. I work with wonderful people. The owners are amazing. Customers are great.”
A group of 13 of those amazing customers went in Sunday morning.
“They weren’t regular customers of ours or anything, but they were great,” says Bachmann. “I really enjoyed serving them. They gave me the money for their bill and it didn’t surprise me that they had a card. I figured someone had a Christmas card and they threw a couple dollars in there.”
“We watched her go and take care of our bill and then she goes behind another counter and we’re all trying to turn our heads and peek, but not let her see because we didn’t want to make it that big of a deal,” says Jessica Greb, organizer of the non-profit Orchestrating Good.
“I saw a $100 bill,” explains Bachmann. “I was shocked about a $100 bill. I was like oh my God, I got a $100 bill. Natasha then said there was a lot more in there. I looked and I was blown away. I then thought it was a mistake.”
The group of 13 women says it was no mistake. They intentionally set out Sunday morning to each gift whoever their server would be $100 - a gift totaling $1,300.
“It was really small what we did, in the grand scheme of everything,” says Greb. “Not knowing her life story, or what her struggles were. That meant a whole lot to us.”
After being in remission for the past 13 years from cancer, Michele says there are little things that shock her, but this gesture kept her speechless.
“I had lost my sister in October,” says Bachmann. “I was having a really hard time. We both had cancer and got it three months apart. So we’ve been in remission for the last few years. She’s making me smile because she knows she can. Those women are like angels and she’s an angel.”
The women are a part of a group called Orchestrating Good, whose goal is to inspire and motivate others. It’s a non-profit started by Jessica Greb.
“This is something that should be happening every day in our communities,” says Greb. “It should be part of who we are as a community.”
Michele gave $50 each to two other servers who were also working that morning.
Michele says she’s not sure what she’ll do with the remainder of the tip, but says she’s saving it for the right time to do something special.
You can learn more about the group and their mission here and on through their Facebook page.