Ellen DeGeneres Gives $10K To Local Waitress

October 21, 2013, 8:06 amwhomagazine

Ellen DeGeneres gives $10,000 to waitress who paid soldiers' tab

Ellen DeGeneres. Photo: Getty Images

A New Hampshire waitress who picked up the lunch tab of two National Guard soldiers affected by the federal government's shutdown has been repaid – more than 300 times over – by television star Ellen DeGeneres.
Sarah Hoidahl, a waitress in Concord, N.H., just wanted to do a nice thing for the soldiers, so she paid for their lunch. It cost her $27.75 ($28.66). On Friday, DeGeneres squared the tab and then some, giving Hoidahl $27.75 in cash and a check for $10,000.

Sarah Hoidahl, Ellen DeGeneres. Photo: YouTube

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An emotional Hoidahl buried her face in her hands and thanked DeGeneres as the talk show host repeated, "You're a good person."
DeGeneres caught wind of Hoidahl's act of kindness when the New Hampshire National Guard posted a picture on its Facebook page. The story spread quickly online, producers saw it and invited Hoidahl to Hollywood. Ellen also gave her a 127cm television.
"In that moment when she opened it and I saw, I just couldn’t even contain my emotions. I just started crying,” she said. "I have medical bills, student loans, some debt to pay off. Obviously, I have a 15-month-old. I do plan on donating some of it to charity."
"It feels like I’m dreaming and I’m going to wake up and I’m going to be like, ‘Oh man, I wish that was real,'" Ms Hoidahl told WMUR-TV