The spirit of the holiday season is alive and well in Pasco County where a group of friends and colleagues shared some laughter, a meal and changed a life at the very same time. Tables were pushed together as a group of 20+ sat down at Christina’s Family Restaurant, a staple on Main Street in New Port Richey. "Every time the door opens, we say, 'Welcome to Christina’s. Come on have a seat wherever you like,'” waitress Tessa Jesmer said. "I was told we were going to have about 12 or 14, this is about 20 people, and honestly, that's great. I'm just so grateful to be able to bring the business in here,” Jesmer added. Despite the large party, Jesmer worked hard to keep the coffee hot and Fernando’s famous omelets a-comin’. “He's been here for 30 years. Everyone knows him in town," Jesmer said of Fernando, the restaurant’s cook. Familiar faces shared the table she was serving as well. City Council members, local realtors, friends and family having a hearty Christmas Eve breakfast. However, good food is not entirely what brought them to the diner on Tuesday. “Everybody at this table has given back this year, and this is really amazing to do this with them,” said Kelly Mothershead, the city’s deputy mayor and organizer of what’s become a biannual tradition every Christmas Eve and once during the summer. The rules are simple: find a local restaurant, grab a seat, have fun and bring a hundred bucks to pay it forward. “We raised $2,100 and the bill is $260, [Tessa} is going to get the balance,” Mothershead explained. Mothershead and the group surprised their hard-working server with a roughly 700% tip, there were not many dry eyes in the room. “I'm a single mom, so it definitely helps me out,” Jesmer said. “I've been very blessed this year, I work three part-time jobs.” MORE: https://www.wtsp.com/article/life/holidays/700-tip-christmas-eve-tradition-blesses-new-port-richey-waitress/67-bc686d10-2d1c-4b11-80e0-ac55014757b5