Good deed by customer helps Muslim waiter feel more at home
A customer at Damascus Restaurant in Denver left her waiter a 424 percent tip and a note that is sending a powerful message to the Muslim community in Colorado.
The customer dined at the restaurant on Nov. 9 when the waiter, Osamah Ajour, reportedly told her he felt uneasy about being a Muslim in America after the election.
Ajour recently moved to the U.S. from Jordan.
The customer left him a $100 tip on the $23.61 bill. She also wrote a note on the receipt that says “You belong here & I’m glad you are here.”
One of Ajour’s friends posted a photo of the receipt to Facebook with a caption saying “This is the America I know n love.”
Ajour commented on his friend’s post: “Brother you forgot to mention that I was a fantastic waiter! This lady made me happy today, I wish I get the chance to see her again, there’re words deep in my heart left unspoken.”
The post has been shared more than 1,100 times.
“I want to say thank you for your support, especially during this time, this crisis that we’re going through,” Damascus Restaurant owner Mahmoud Kassir said.
Kassir is also a Muslim immigrant. He moved to Nebraska 35 years ago to attend college, where he learned to cook his mother’s recipes.
He said he had a brick thrown through the window of his Arvada restaurant in the aftermath of 9/11, but has not been harassed about his birthplace or religion since.
“This is America. This is our country whether anybody likes it or not. I’ve lived here two thirds of my life and I’m here to stay and so are my kids,” he said. “Our president-elect says what he was. We keep going and move on and we don’t listen.”