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This article is written by a student writer from the Her Campus at Vanderbilt chapter.

Hi everyone! We’re back with yet another shoutout to someone who went above and beyond what was necessary to make someone else’s day. I have a story from over the last summer that I wanted to share.

It was mid-June, and a group of us were celebrating the birthday of our good friend, Liz. We didn’t all know each other super well—some of us were close, but others had only met a couple times. Yet, we all wound up together at Chuy’s to celebrate our friend.

Dinner had been going well. We all got drinks, and we were enjoying getting to know each other. Liz was able to circulate and talk with all of her friends. Towards the end of the dinner, I had gotten up to go to the bathroom, and when I came back, everyone was in shock. They couldn’t wait to tell me what had just happened.

Caroline, one of Liz’s guests, is a tour guide for Vanderbilt, and she had been giving tours over the summer. A family from one of her tour groups recognized her, and had paid our entire bill because of how much they enjoyed the tour. Keep in mind, that they were picking up a bill for 8 people, which included alcohol. When Caroline realized what had happened, she immediately ran after them to thank them, and it made the rest of our night.

I like this story in particular, because it proves something really important to me. Caroline had put her best foot forward on that tour, without really expecting a reward. She tried to treat her tour group kindly, and she obviously wanted to represent Vanderbilt well, but there wasn’t anything in particular she would get in return. This family had recognized Caroline’s kindness and hard work, and found a way to thank her for it, going above and beyond what was expected of them.

Granted, this doesn’t always happen, but it just goes to show that if you put something good out into the universe, you may get goodness in return. Keep that in mind and try to bring positive energy wherever you go!

Muna Ikedionwu

Vanderbilt '19

Muna is studying Medical Humanities & The Arts and Corporate Strategy at Vanderbilt University. She loves supporting small businesses, watching indie films on weekends, and can talk for hours about anything from the newest addition to her skincare routine to how the digitization of political news has changed society for the better. Her motto is "Be fearless. Be authentic. Be brave enough to start a conversation that matters."