Photo: @spotlightshanell / TikTok
"We're gonna do what the Church people couldn't."
By Megan Quinn — Written on Mar 09, 2023
Nobody understands how crucial tip money is unless they work in the food industry. With expenses skyrocketing and minimum wages barely enough to afford a decent living, many servers highly depend on tip money to make liveable earnings.
However, some customers do not see the point in tipping, and while it is not a requirement, it is a respectable gesture — especially when you have a large party and a server breaking their back to bring out endless drink and meal orders.
One waitress vented her frustrations after taking on a large group of customers only to receive a $10 tip for all of her strenuous work. That’s when social media decided to do its thing and reward the woman with the money she rightfully deserved.
The server revealed that she was only tipped $10 by a party of 21 for a $350 check.
TikTok user @SpotlightShanell shared her waitressing horror story in a video that has been viewed over 275,000 times. A table of 21 was seated in her section, proving to be difficult right from the start. “Right now I have a table full of church people that are about to send me to h–l,” she says at the start of her video.
Shanell explains that when the party arrived, it originally consisted of 13 people. However, they began adding others to their reservation, pulling chairs from other tables. It took an hour for the entire group to sit and they refused to put any of their orders, including drinks, until then.
“We’re telling them, ‘we might not be able to sit all of you at the same table because you said it was gonna be 13 people,’' Shanell says. The party refused to listen and continued to pull chairs over until their group reached 21 people in total.
Shanell adds that once the party was seated and settled, they began rushing her to bring out their orders. Still, she tried her best to have patience with them, as they were an older group of people. The one thing propelling her forward was the hope of receiving a generous tip, despite Shanell claiming that the customers were getting on her last nerve.
When the time finally came and the server collected the check from the table after they paid, she was in disbelief at the tip they left her.
“Y’all I’m about to scream,” she says in a follow-up video depicting the tab. The bill totaled roughly $350, meaning that an appropriate tip would be around $70. However, she reveals that the party only tipped her $10.
Perhaps the most shocking part of it all was that the individual who grabbed the check was a Church minister, someone who preaches kindness and giving back.
Other TikTok users were disgusted by the party’s treatment of their hard-working server.
“People who don’t tip DO THE MOST AND ASK FOR TOO MUCH. There should be a table just for them,” one user commented.
“I don’t know what kind of Church people they are,” another user wrote.
“Why do people feel they can abuse workers by not tipping them? 21 people who arrived over an hour late? People know damn well they should do better!” another user shared.
Shanell’s video quickly caught the attention of many social media users who wanted to help her out and make up for the money she lost.
One of those users was @jolly_good_ginger who felt outraged on the server’s behalf. He took it upon himself to make his own TikTok video detailing the situation and called on followers to send some donations her way.
“Now I’m an Atheist, but shouldn’t a group of church folks be loving and giving?” he points out of Shanell’s table. “She was with these people for an hour and a half, waiting on hand and foot for them to make $10?...Here’s what we’re gonna do. We’re gonna do what the Church couldn’t.”
The man shares a screenshot from the comments section of Shanell’s video where she reveals her cash app account to another user. He calls on everyone who watches his video, which has racked up over 1 million views, to send a dollar her way.
He also acknowledges that corporations are failing their hardworking servers by underpaying them and that while customers should not be expected to tip them enough money to make a living, acts of compassion go a long way.
Within hours, Shanell received thousands of dollars from TikTok users.
While at brunch with her friends the next day, the server claimed that her phone started “blowing up” with cash app notifications. Shanell was overwhelmed by the amount of money she received and assured those who felt as if they did not give enough that she was grateful for any amount.
“I don’t even have the words. Thank you all so much! Wow wow wow,” she captioned her video sharing the happy news. She also revealed that brunch drinks for her and her friends were her treat thanks to her new earnings!
Shanell also posted a separate video thanking @jolly_good_ginger. “The influence that people have on social media combined with God… is just so overwhelming… thank you, thank you, thank you!” she says.
Megan Quinn is a writer at YourTango who covers entertainment and news, self, love, and relationships.