Samantha Heaton, a waitress at Buffalo Wild Wings in Rockford, Illinois, has shared an image of a note left by a family she was serving, denying her a tip for 'not loving Jesus'.
In an interview with The Rock River Times Heaton said that she went 'above and beyond' when serving the family, that she took their order, made conversation with them, and followed up with them to make sure that they were enjoying their experience. However, when she collected their credit card statement at the end of their meal she found a note explaining why they had left her no tip.
'Can't tip someone who doesn't love Jesus. Bad tatoo.' The note read, the spelling of tattoo being incorrect on the receipt.
Heaton told the media that the subject of religion did not come up during their conversation, nor did she mention to them that she was gay. The note does mention her tattoo, however. As pictured above, Heaton has a rainbow coloured equality sign tattooed on her arm.
'I went above and beyond for this couple, and for them to that kind of hurt.' Heaton said. 'It sucks not getting a tip, but not getting a tip because I'm gay in 2017 hurts just a little more.'
One of Heaton's co-workers took a photograph of the note next to her tattoo and posted it to social media, along with the caption 'I would just like to say that being gay does NOT MEAN you don't believe in God or Jesus. And people who are 'religious' should not disrespect or act in such ways to other people. p.s., they spelled tattoo wrong.'
Despite many commenters stating that the image is fake, and that it has been fabricated by Heaton in order to garner outrage and support for the LGBT+ community, a manager at Buffalo Wild Wings in Rockford confirmed to HuffPost that Heaton was employed at the restaurant at the time, and that they were made aware of the incident when it happened.
'I myself am Christian.' Heaton said. 'And, as a Christian, 'thou shall not judge'. No matter how someone looks, you should love them for what's in their heart and how they treat you - not for what's on the outside.
'As someone who came out when it was still a battle for the LGBT community, that's just plain rude and uncalled for. What if one day their kids grow up and want to be with the same sex? Are they going to disown them? Throw them on the street?'
Heaton said that she wihed the customers 'would have said something if there was a problem', though she did add, 'I feel that no matter what I would have said they still probably would've left the receipt. People are so closed-minded and only choose to listen to what they believe to be right.'
A Buffalo Wild Wings company spokesperson has released a statement on the incident, saying, 'Buffalo Wild Wings is about creating a great guest and team member experience, and we strive to create a respectful restaurant environment that our guests and team members expect and deserve.'
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