Danielle Franzoni, a server in Alpena Michigan received a tip for $2,020 on a bill of just $23 from a generous couple at the restaurant where she worked leading up to the New Year.
The anonymous couple included a special note, “Happy New Year 2020 Tip Challenge.”
Franzoni was left speechless. She asked her boss whether it was too good to be true and found out the tip was in fact legitimate.
“Things like this don’t happen to people like me,” she told the Alpena Times.
The tip couldn’t have come at a better time for the waitress. It had been a difficult year for Franzoni. She had moved to Alpena to “start over,” after living in a homeless shelter.
Franzoni was moved by her customers’ generosity which gave her hope that she could get through each day. She also moved into her own home that same week.
“I”m gonna build a future because of this,” she told CNN affiliate WXYZ. “My kids have a future, and I have a home. It’s a really big deal.”
New Kids on the Block singer Donnie Wahlberg was inspired by the trend the couple started and decided to top an iHop waitress a $2,020 tip along with a handwritten note of thanks to their server.
His wife, actress and “Masked Singer” judge Jenny McCarthy shared a photo with their receipt acknowledging her husband’s generosity and encouraging other big spenders to spread some joy to others in the new year.
. @DonnieWahlberg starting 2020 off like the amazing man he is. #ihop #2020tipchallenge
? pic.twitter.com/AjAEN0hqL6— Jenny McC-Wahlberg (@JennyMcCarthy) January 1, 2020
In 2018, a similar tipping challenge started generating some buzz on social media. Customers were encouraged to top 100 percent and surprise their servers.
In order to participate, you don’t have to go as big as the anonymous couple. Just make sure you’re tipping the year in total.