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WJFW News

50-year Waitress Serves Last Table Submitted: 06/29/2012

TOMAHAWK - She's spent fifty years waiting tables.

Over the years, she's become a beloved friend of those she's served.

Today, Sophie Bruzan served up her last plate of food at the Tomahawk Family Restaurant.

She got her first job when she was 16, and now in her late 70s, she's finally ready to retire.

After five decades on the job, the beloved waitress took her last order at the Tomahawk Family Restaurant Friday.

For longtime customers, Sophie and her personality are the reason they keep coming back.

"Once I shorted her on a tip accidentally, and as a result, she came back, and said to me, 'I'm really going to enjoy my Florida vacation on this tip!'" says longtime customer Mike Waters.

"If she says anything to the customers, it's, 'if you don't like it, go to McDonald's'," says Family Restaurant regular Mike Jourdan.

On her last day, Sophie thinks all the way back to her first day as a waitress.

"When I went to pour coffee, I put the coffee in the saucer and forgot the cup. That was something. But I still had my job," she says.

Fifty years later, she's leaving on her own terms.

"It makes you feel good, when you walk out of here after talking to her. She's just a fantastic person," says Don Hoff.

Why does she love waiting tables so much?

"Just the people. Not the food, not the work, I just love people," she says.


Story By: Ben Meyer

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