Red Lobster Server Who Found Racial Slur on Receipt Gets $10K 'Tip'
After a long, hard day of waiting tables at a Red Lobster in Franklin, Tennessee, server Toni Christina Jenkins was extremely disheartened to find that two customers had apparently left behind a receipt with the word "nigger" in lieu of a tip.
"I felt like I got kicked in the stomach. It was hard to receive," the 19-year-old nursing student told the Daily News shortly after the incident.
Jenkins told ABC News she decided to post a photo of the receipt to Facebook "create awareness that racism is still taking place in this generation."
Things soon went from bad to worse for Jenkins, who was suspended from her job for violating the company's policy prohibiting the posting of receipts online.
But things have a way of quickly turning around — especially when the Internet has your back.
A short while later Jenkins was invited to return to work, with the full support of corporate. And then something even more amazing happened: Jenkins received a $10,000 tip to make up for the one she didn't get on September 7th.
"Tips for Toni," an online fundraiser organized by AddictingInfo.org founder Matthew Hanson managed to collect some $10,749 to show Jenkins that not everyone sucks.
"I wanted to send a clear message that people are disgusted by racism and people won’t tolerate that behavior," Hanson told the Daily News.
"I literally screamed. I was so confused," Jenkins told ABC News. "I was just so thankful. I felt so blessed and so honored that so many people came together on my behalf to give this to me."
Jenkins has already used some of the money to purchase that used Toyota Camry she had been saving up her Red Lobster tips to buy, and gave the rest to her family and charity.
