Strangers donate $4.5K tip to waiter after diners left homophobic message

• A waiter in Wisconsin was given a $4,500 tip from strangers after a group of diners subjected them to homophobic abuse.
• Good samaritan Eric Salzwedel shared the story on Facebook and spearheaded a fund-raising effort.
• Eric, the co-founder of the local nonprofit ‘Do Good Wisconsin’ and about 250 others were able to raise $4,500 for the restaurant worker.

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Some kind-hearted strangers melted the Internet’s heart after contributing $4,500 to a waiter who allegedly was stiffed by homophobic customers at a restaurant in Madison, Wisconsin.

“To the folks who felt it was necessary to write this hateful note and not tip … don’t worry me and about 250 others will cover the tip for you,” read an Aug. 18 Facebook post by Eric Salzwedel, the co-founder of the local nonprofit group Do Good Wisconsin, who spearheaded the fund-raising effort.

The sordid ordeal occurred earlier this month after a couple refused to tip a server — who has opted to go unnamed — on account of their sexual orientation. In lieu of a gratuity, the prejudiced pair allegedly wrote a note on their $143 bill that read, “Service was good but we don’t tip sinfull [sic] homosexuals.”

The discriminatory act came on the radar of Salzwedel, who first uploaded pictures of the receipt to his Facebook page Aug. 16.

“This came across my table this morning and upsets me greatly!” fumed the horrified Samaritan. “This just happened here in Madison at a local restaurant.”

As reparations for the heinous behavior, the do-gooder pledged “to go back into the restaurant, request this server and show them that this community and so many others do LOVE them with the biggest tip they have ever received!”

Salzwedel then requested donations from Facebook followers and friends, promising that “100% of anything sent will be given to the server!” adding, “We know unfortunately this money won’t change some people’s behaviors, but hopefully it will show the amount of love there is for this server!”

His call to action struck a chord among strangers on social media, who were more than willing to compensate the waiter for enduring the act of bigotry.

“Hate has no place here. Tip sent via PayPal!” wrote one retroactive gratuity-giver on Facebook.

“Love that you are trying to right such a terrible wrong. I donated! And shared the post!” another commented

“Done. I’ll also be praying that they somehow find out how big of a tip their ‘non-tip’ generated for this man,” said another supporter of the anti-hate campaign.

This isn’t the first time heroic strangers have pitched in to help a victim of discrimination. This past spring, good-hearted Samaritans contributed more than $800,000 to an elderly Chinese woman who was attacked by a white man in San Francisco.

Source: New York Post