Every day, we do a few good deeds for people we don't know.
Maybe you hold the door for a stranger, or leave extra money in the parking meter for someone else.
Normally these acts of kindness go unnoticed. But when Waffle House waitress Evoni Williams from La Marque, Texas helped one of her customers, someone was watching.
And it paid off in a big way.
"If you need help, that's what I am here for."
Williams was at her job earlier this month when an elderly customer asked for help.
At 78 years old, and fresh out of the hospital after a case of pneumonia, Adrien Charpentier admits his hands "are not up to par."
Charpentier asked for help slicing up the ham on his plate, and Williams was happy to oblige.
"I was just like, 'Sure! If you need help, that's what I am here for,'" she told CNN.
"My cook was calling my name to pick up food I had on the board, but I continued to cut his ham."
But unbeknownst to Williams, another customer, Laura Wolf, had snapped a picture of her act of kindness.
Going Viral
"This may seem small but to him," Wolf wrote about the good deed on Facebook, "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."
Obviously people agreed, because positive comments and encouraging messages for Williams poured in.
Soon, the post had been shared tens of thousands of times, and attracted the attention of La Marque's mayor.
That's when he returned the favor for Williams's good deed.
Evoni Williams Day
Mayor Bobby Hocking shared the picture of Williams on La Marque's own Facebook page, writing "Kindness is free, folks. We are proud!"
In fact, the mayor was so proud of Williams and the attention she garnered that he declared March 8 would be named "Evoni 'Nini' Williams Day" in her honor.
But there was another surprise in store for the helpful waitress.
News of her good deed reached the nearby Texas Southern University.
When administrators learned Williams was working to raise money for her education, they awarded her a $16,000 scholarship.
Williams says she hopes to study business, and start her own restaurant or salon some day.
Still Modest
Even after the outpouring of support for her show of kindness, Williams is trying to keep things in perspective.
"It's something I would do any other day," she says about helping her customers.
I'm glad to see a positive story like this getting some recognition!