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Boss Hands an Envelope to Each Employee Gathered at Company Holiday Party - No One Could Have Guessed What It Contained
Uplifting News

Boss Hands an Envelope to Each Employee Gathered at Company Holiday Party - No One Could Have Guessed What It Contained

Everyone knows that at the end of every calendar year reigns the holiday season filled with wonderment and feel-good energy for family and friends.The season of giving also happened to not be missed by one real estate company who gave their employees a gift of a lifetime -- a $10 million bonus to share.A Memorable Holiday Party St. John Properties/VimeoIn 2019, Baltimore, Maryland-based real estate company St. John Properties hosted their annual holiday party filled with great vibes, food, drinks and great socializing for their nearly 200 employees.And while everyone was having a good time, they were handed red envelopes with their names on them. But no one could even guess what was inside each of them.The Surprise FortunesSt. John Properties founder Edward St. John hugging an employee following the announcement/ Vimeo."You're all participating in a bonus based on the number of years (of service within the company) of $10 million," said Edward St. John, the company founder and chairman.Many of the employees were surprised to discover that they’d be taking home a whopping $50,000 while the highest awarded bonus was $270,000.Fortunately, this whole moment was filmed and shared on St. John Properties Vimeo account, showing several employees overcome with emotion over the pretty penny they received at the party.“It is life-changing… it’s really amazing. Ed is so generous,” said one employee crying with tears of joy.“I was totally blown away when this happened,” another said.The Big Celebration of the Company’s AchievementsAccording to St. John Properties, the holiday bonus was given out to commemorate their massive achievement of creating and growing 20 million square feet of real estate, retail and office space within eight states at the time.What a way to add a dash of sweetness to the festive season!St. John’s Properties now has properties in 11 states: Maryland, Virginia, North Carolina, Colorado, Florida, Louisiana, Nevada, Pennsylvania, Texas, Utah and Wisconsin.More from Goalcast:Boss Thinks Man Is Joking When He Said He Walked 6 Hours to Get To Work – Then a Stranger Makes an Offer He Can’t RefuseBoss Catches Employee Cooking Rice in the Office – A Conversation With Him Reveals What He Actually Does His SalaryStruggling Employee Reveals the Bitter Truth About His Job to Undercover Boss – He Responds by Giving Him a $250,000 House

19-Year-Old Goes to Hotel to Take Part in a Raffle - Little Did She Know Her Friends Had a Secret Plan in Place
Uplifting News

19-Year-Old Goes to Hotel to Take Part in a Raffle - Little Did She Know Her Friends Had a Secret Plan in Place

Inside the Grand Meridian in Appleton, Wisconsin, the room went quiet as a hand pulled out a raffle ticket. Whoever’s ticket corresponded with the numbers called would walk out of the Chick-fil-A Christmas party with a new car. Unless that ticket belonged to Haley Bridges. In that case, Haley’s best friend and coworker would get the car. And that’s exactly what happened.How Two Chick-fil-A Employees Formed a Deep ConnectionPhoto by Jace MillerSeventeen-year-old Haley Bridges started working at Chick-fil-A in late August after a classmate referred her to the job. She quickly bonded with her coworkers, but she got especially close to one friend in particular.“I love working here. Not only are the people that work here amazing, but it has taught me so many new things,” Haley said. "I always look forward to going to work, I get to see my second family.”Hokule’a Taniguchi, Haley’s 19-year-old coworker, met Haley through work. By September, Hoku and Haley would hang out frequently, even outside of work.“What we do most of the time is chill at whoever’s house we choose,” said Haley. “We are very spontaneous, as well as our little close friend group we have.”How a Teen’s Observation Led to Her Best Friend’s New CarHoku rode her bike to work every day, even in winter. Haley recognized that Hoku needed the car more than she did, and Haley and her friends decided that if one of them were to win the raffle, they would gift the car to Hoku.Our friend group and some other friends decided to all put one in for her. We were all very nervous that someone else would get chosen, but we kept our hopes up.Haley BridgesThe raffle was the main event of the Chick-fil-A Christmas party every year, with rumors circling that this year’s prize was a car. The rumors were verified when Haley walked into the Grand Meridian, where the party was taking place. Displayed in the banquet hall was a car.How 5 Raffle Tickets and 1 Teenager Changed a Girl’s LifeEach employee was given raffle tickets that corresponded to the number of hours they worked. Haley had five tickets.Luckily, those five tickets were enough: Haley was announced as the winner of the grand prize.“My heart felt as if it was racing and we both stood up and ran to each other,” Haley said. Everyone in the room felt like they were gone, it felt as if it was just us two in the moment. We hugged each other hard and cried so much. Everyone else was either crying or clapping. We all had a big group hug with everyone near us and it felt so unreal experiencing this.Haley BridgesOne Teenager Proved the Importance of Being SelflessInspired by Haley’s kindness, strangers were moved to help. After Haley’s aunt organized a fundraiser, strangers donated to Haley so that she could pay off the car she already owned. As for Hoku, she is planning to move to an apartment closer to the Chick-fil-A where she works, and the car has been put to good use as Haley and Hoku have gone on many rides together in it.Though any teenager would jump at the chance to win a new car, Haley put the needs of her friend in front of her own desires. Haley is an example of a true friend, someone who cares about you enough to commit selfless acts for your benefit. Anyone is lucky to have someone like Haley looking out for them.More from Goalcast:Math Teacher Who Commutes Four Hours Every Day Gets Life-Changing Surprise from StudentsMan Notices Grandmother Raising 4 Children Alone Lives in Poor Conditions – So, He Decides to Trick Her9-Year-Old Learns Classmates Can’t Afford a Birthday Party – Responds with Selfless Gesture

Anonymous Guardian Angel Leaves $3,000 Tip At Pandemic-Ravaged Restaurant
Motivation

Anonymous Guardian Angel Leaves $3,000 Tip At Pandemic-Ravaged Restaurant

This year, more than ever, we all could use some holiday cheer.An anonymous stranger certainly did his part to put smiles on the faces of staff members at a Cleveland restaurant when he gave them a $3,000 tip on a $7 bill. A $7 pint with a jaw-dropping tip Sunday, November 29 was the last day of service at Nighttown, a staple local restaurant in Cleveland, Ohio. Owner Brendan Ring decided to shut down until January as the state's cases of COVID-19 continued to skyrocket – and the last day of business was a busy one."We got kind of busy on Sunday with a lot of our regulars coming in since it was our last day," Ring told CNN.Then, a semi-regular customer came in and walked up to the bar. "[He] ordered a pint of Stella and he took a couple of sips out of it and said to the manager, 'Can I just get my check?'"The man, who wished to remain anonymous, quickly filled out the check and brought it over to Ring's table. He told him to share it with the servers and then, like in the movies, walked away. "He said, 'Good luck to you guys and we'll see you when you reopen.'"Brendan Ring A mistake? A joke?When Ring first saw the check, he thought it was a $300 tip. Unbelievable, but not jaw-dropping. Then, he put on his glasses and realized it was a $3,000 tip... on a $7 bill. He ran outside after the customer to make sure he didn't make an error. "He said, 'No, that's what I intended. Share it with the staff, good luck to you guys, Merry Christmas and we'll see you when you come back.'"Brendan Ring When Ring returned to the restaurant and told his staff, one of the servers thought he was joking – Ring had that kind of reputation at Nighttown."She said 'Yeah right, you did that.'" "The next server I showed it to, she started crying, she knew it was legit," Ring said. Along with Ring, the four servers working that day got $750 from the tip.An outpouring of loveRing told CNN he was in disbelief with not only the generosity of the anonymous client, but also how viral the story has become.Ring said his sister back in Ireland, where he is originally from, even saw the story in the newspaper."We're all so desperate for uplifting news, if this was a normal year, yeah, this would be a good story, but it's a great story because of the year we're in," Ring said. "The outpouring of love for this story has been universal."Give thanksYou see stories of people leaving huge tips from time to time, and they're always heartwarming. But it feels even more significant this year considering how tough the pandemic has been for the restaurant industry.If you can and have the means, this story is a reminder to give to those who've helped carry you through this year. Whether that's supporting your local restaurant, calling up a frontline worker you know and thanking them or mailing a gift to a friend or family member who has been there for you. Again, there's never been a better year to spread holiday cheer. More uplifting stories:4 Years Ago, He Was Homeless–Today, He Bought His First HousePoor Man Who Missed Job Interview To Save A Life Had Employers Lining Up To Hire HimDomestic Abuse Survivor Marries The First Responder Who Saved Her LifeBrooklyn Landlord Cancels Rent For Hundreds Of Tenants, Setting An Unprecedented Example For Others