JACKSONVILLE, Fla.-- You'll usually see a closed sign on Orsay's restaurant door on Memorial. in 2018 however, on a day reserved to honor those who've given the ultimate sacrifice, co-workers came back to work to help raise money for a man they consider a family.
Orsay restaurant uniforms looked a little different to honor their friend and co-worker Jordan White. White was stabbed last weekend near Birdies restaurant. Witnesses say they called Jacksonville Sheriff's Office thirty minutes prior to the stabbing informing them a man had a knife. The sheriff's office has yet to release information on a possible suspect.
“We’ve got an army of people here today, working volunteer hours for their buddy,” managing partner Jason Eddy said.
Once managing partner Jason Eddy heard Jorden White had been stabbed, he knew he had to do something.
“It’s shocking you know, number one.”
He decided to open the door’s here at Orsay on Memorial Day and hold a fundraiser.
“Jordan is our family, we’re pretty tight nit, so we couldn’t think of a better thing to do with our time today.”
Hundreds stopped by the restaurant with proceeds going towards White’s recovery expenses.
“To do that for one of their employees, that's amazing, " Cathy Wilson said.
Inger Williamson and Cathy Wilson found out about the event from social media.
“I think what they’re doing here is fantastic, not only because he is a local patron here in Jacksonville, but he is a friend to a lot of people here,“ Inger Williamson said.
Others like Zach Holloway have been following Jordan’s recovery from day one.
“The response hasn’t been what it needed to be, so for the community to step up and do what the city won’t do, I think is phenomenal.”
Holloway stands alongside witnesses who’ve criticized the sheriff’s office for not responding to earlier calls the night White was stabbed and argue there needs to be better protection and communication.
“You need to respond appropriately and the response, the information and the information from the response has been at a very negative level,“ Holloway said.
So these friends and strangers came together to make there’s a positive out of Jordan White’s slow recovery.