ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. — This holiday season, the music and decorations remind people to feel happy and bright! But for Linda Schneegold, 2019 was just not her year.
- Anonymous person paid for 120-150 people's dinners at Cracker Barrel
- The end bill for him was close to $2,000 according to the manager
- Manager said person also came in days prior, also paying for meals
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"Horrible year, horrible," Schneegold said.
A broken hip in February led to her being out of work most of the year, with a limp to wrap up it up in December.
“I didn’t work for months, so I am broke. I mean my bills, I couldn’t pay ‘em, because I didn’t have a paycheck," Schneegold said.
Sunday, her sister decided to take her out to dinner.
"I said, 'Let’s just go to the Wendy’s and get a baked potato,' because I really couldn’t afford a decent dinner," Schneegold said. "She took me to Cracker Barrel, my favorite place, because I was kinda "bah humbug" this year."
Her sister, Suzie, said she would treat, so Schneegold browsed the shop while she went to pay.
"Suzi then came running out to me, ‘Did you hear what happened?’ I said, ‘No.’ She goes, ‘There is a man in here, he’s paid for everybody’s meal," Schneegold said, laughing.
An anonymous Kris Kringle had come in around 6 p.m. on Sunday, December 15 to the Cracker Barrel in St. Petersburg. He sat at a table and while he ate his dinner, he decided to pay for everyone in the restaurant's meals up until 7 p.m.
The end bill for him was close to $2,000 according to James Wood, the manager.
In just that hour, he helped between 120-150 people.
Even more amazing, Wood said this was his second act of kindness in the week. On Thursday, he had stopped by too.
"He asked if he could take care of the checks of anybody who was dining with us that was by themselves. He took care of all their checks, and compensated all the servers for their gratuity as well," Wood said. “He wanted to remain anonymous, he just wanted to do it and wish them a happy holiday.”
For Schneegold, the act brought a tough year to a good end.
"Just an amazing person, amazing person. If you see this, God bless you, I love you," Schneegold said. “2020 is going to be a good year.”