Waffle House Employee Receives $16,000 Scholarship For Good Deed

A young waitress from a Waffle House received a $16,000 scholarship from Texas Southern University after her act of kindness went viral on social media.

Evoni Williams, an 18-year-old student who lives in LaMarque, Texas, was working her shift on Saturday when an elderly customer asked her to help him cut up his food.

“He was like, 'My hands are not functioning too well.' He needed me to cut his food. And I did," Williams told USA Today.

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Laura Wolf, a customer sitting nearby, snapped a photo of Williams doing her good deed. The post went viral on Facebook and has received over 121,000 likes and over 62,000 shares.

"Without hesitation, she took his plate and began cutting up his ham. This may seem small but to him, I'm sure it was huge. I'm thankful to have seen this act of kindness and caring at the start of my day while everything in this world seems so negative," Wolf wrote in her post.

Wolf told KHOU-TV that William’s kindness, despite how busy the restaurant was, really made an impression on her.

“It was so busy in here, and she actually took the time to stop and hear what he had to say instead of walking past him. That just meant something to me," Wolf told KHOU-TV.

The City of La Marque reposted Wolf’s post and commended Williams for her selfless act.

“Employee Evoni Williams went above and beyond to make sure her customer could enjoy his breakfast. Kindness is free, folks. We are proud!” the post read.

The City honored William’s good deed by giving her her own day on Thursday. Williams, who says she wants to study business management, was assigned a counselor by Texas Southern University to help her enroll in their program and start her degree.