A waitress at a Tennessee Waffle House was astonished when a customer handed her a $600 tip. Lauren Ball, a single mother about to embark on a trip with her father, had just paid for her son’s second birthday party and was in a financial bind. She had no clue a client would leave her such a large gratuity.

Ball stated that she had a great chat with two of the guys she was serving, and that one of them told her that his friend was going to give her a large tip. She wasn’t convinced until she saw the $600 bill on the table. She was so taken aback that she felt sick to her stomach, but in a pleasant way.

According to the Kingsport Times-News, as word got out about the tip, other employees wanted to check whether it was true. The cook walked outside and asked the man who had left a gratuity whether he was serious, to which he replied that he was.

As the men were departing, Ball raced outside, hugged the man who had left the tip, and thanked him in tears. She’d never met him before that evening. Ball questioned him about why he would do such a thing for a stranger, and he said, “I just like to do nice things for nice people.”

Ball said she will never forget the man’s generosity and hopes to be able to repay him one day. Many readers reacted to the story, stating that Ball earned the tip and that the man who left it was really generous. “This woman deserved it,” one reader remarked. What a gentleman! This single mother works to provide for her children. People should take notes from her.”