BARDSTOWN, Ky. — In a friendly tone, and with a smile, Colton's Steakhouse & Grille staff answer the phone, during Sunday's dinner rush.
Being so busy can get overwhelming but everyone's willing to help each other out.
“Yeah, definitely,” employee Channing Inghram said. “A lot of good people here and a lot of people willing to help out.”
It was a gesture, apparent enough, from the scene in the parking lot of the restaurant, Sunday, which was just as crowded with customers, opening their wallets for something other than a steak dinner.
“We wanted to do whatever we could try to do to help,” kitchen manager Christine Perry said.
She and countless other employees tolerated the heavy heat to help two “integral” members on their team that have found themselves in life-altering situations.
The first of the two, is long-time server Bonnie Pearson.
“She's such an amazing person, and such a staple to our restaurant,” Perry said.
Back in July, Pearson got into a car accident.
“She was pulling out of a gas station and a gentleman was coming so fast down the road,” Pearson said. “He could not stop. It fractured the vertebrae in her neck.”
Pearson’s manager, and colleague of more than 20-years, Ben Ashlock, says his first thought after hearing about her injuries, was knowing how hard her recovery would be .
“[It’s] the same concept is with me, you know," Ashlock said.
Just weeks after Pearson’s accident, Ashlock would come to understand, personally, how difficult it is.
“It's not really the pain,” he said. “It’s the inability to do anything.”
They both had nearly been paralyzed.
“Ben had a totally different experience,” Perry said. “He was coming through Hodgenville around the circle and a gentleman t-boned him.”
Ashlock remembers he was on his way to work when it happened.
“He called me before he called the ambulance, on the side of the road, bleeding, broken,” Perry said. “[He] worried about whether the restaurant was going to open.”
Ashlock’s accident caused him to need 26 stitches in his head. He also fractured vertebrae, as well as his back.
“I just feel like I've had my usefulness taken from me for now,” Ashlock said. “It's really disappointing and discouraging.”
There's a lot of uncertainty surrounding the two's road to recovery. The co-workers, both workhorses, are now bed-ridden and unable to do much.It's why their co-workers have stepped up.
“They are staples, they're pillars for us around here,” employee Makayla Adams said. “It's nice to get to come together. You know who your family is in times like these.”
Staff held a fundraiser Sunday, from open to close, pulling out all the stops in between: games, raffle baskets, a dunk tank, cornhole and more.
Some servers were even manning tables outside between waiting on tables inside.
“The whole community came out to help us today,” Perry said. “Almost every business in the city of Bardstown and some from different states, in different counties.”
In all, those who helped raised more than $1,000 for Pearson and Ashlock, which can offset some of the steep medical expenses they face.
“They both were surprised and incredibly humbled,” Perry said.
“It was humbling and great,” Ashlock said. “It was a great day.”
Ashlock said his recovery may take 12-weeks or longer, while staff said Pearson’s timetable for getting better is less certain. They’re unsure when or if she’ll be able to return to work at the steakhouse.
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