Setting the record straight...

Hi everybody.

A few weeks ago I posted an account about my son Zach and a situation with one of his internship employers, the Red Lobster restaurant in Manassas, Va. I posted what I had been told had happened during his most recent visit there. Last weekend my husband Mike and I went to the restaurant and met with a manager at Red Lobster to discuss what happened. He had not been there that day but was very surprised to hear what had apparently transpired. In fact, Mike and I both had the immediate feeling that his shock and sadness was genuine and started to wonder whether this was some sort of horrible misunderstanding and questioned if we had been misinformed. Well, today we met with the manager of the restaurant, Jesse Green, as well as the Red Lobster employee who had been there at the time. It was immediately obvious to Mike and me that, contrary to what we had believed to be true just a few short weeks ago, Mr Green is in fact a huge supporter of programs like these. He has a tremendous heart that has guided him for many many years to support programs like these here and elsewhere in the country.

So many of you have been so supportive of my family and me, and the outpouring of emotion has been so humbling. That is why Mike and I want everyone to see this. The reputation of Red Lobster here in Manassas (and perhaps corporately) was wrongly tarnished in the account I posted earlier because I trusted the source and believed the information to be correct and we want to set the record straight. Much, much more importantly, the name and reputation of a fine man, Jesse Green, has been branded with what has turned out to be the opposite of the truth.  We were beyond sad to discover that we had been misinformed and we believe in making things right.

We had a wonderful meeting at the school this afternoon. While the restaurant may not have enough work for them to do everyday, for Mike and me it's enough that they open their doors as much as they are able. If more businesses were like the Red Lobster here and more managers were like Mr. Green, the world would be a wonderful place for Zach for the rest of his life.  It is a difficult road we walk in that our son cannot tell us what happens to him each day.  We are forced to trust those that he is with when he's not in our care to be honest, sensitive and advocates for him.  I honestly went with my "mama gut" after hearing the report from one of the staff who assists with the interns...called the internship director to confirm and was told that what I had heard was accurate.  Unfortunately, I was misinformed.
We pray constantly for his protection and for his happiness.

Please, please, if you forwarded my blog post to any of your friends, send them this to set the record straight. I know that good news doesn't always travel as fast as bad news, but all I can say is if you saw the look in the eyes of the manager, saw what we saw and felt what we felt, you would want to tell as many of your friends as you could. Whatever my blog led you to think about RL in Manassas, every time you drive by it, say a prayer of thanks to God for being in the hearts of people like Jesse Green.

Blessings to you,

Michelle and Mike