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Mother of Waffle House shooting survivor gets wedding dress for waitress

Between the necklaces, shoes, earrings and racks of dresses, Vickie Davis was surrounded by beauty at Glitz Nashville Thursday. Wednesday, she gave a beautiful gift to someone she just met but who means the world to her.

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WSMV) — The mother of a man who survived the Waffle House shooting in Antioch is honoring a waitress for saving her son's life.

Between the necklaces, shoes, earrings and racks of dresses, Vickie Davis was surrounded by beauty at Glitz Nashville Thursday. Wednesday, she gave a beautiful gift to someone she just met but who means the world to her.

"I'm a servant of God," said Davis. "We're all supposed to help people, right?"

In April, Davis's son, Michael Garth Sr., was at a Waffle House in Antioch. A worker named Virginia Stanley asked Garth and a friend to move from the bar to a table.

"She was washing dishes, and she didn't want to get water on them," said Davis. "Soon after, they moved their seat. That's when everything started."

A man walked into the Waffle House and began firing shots, killing four people. Garth's first seat would have been in the line of fire before he was moved by Stanley.

"She's my hero," said Davis. "She's my personal hero. I'd been praying and asking God to help me find her."

Davis said she was at a Firestone one day when the manager for Waffle House happened to walk inside. She asked him if she could contact Stanley.

Davis had a plan. During their annual Gifts of Gratitude event, Glitz Nashville gives wedding dresses to veterans and first responders. Davis, a veteran of the Army, National Guard and reserves, made a special request. She wanted the event to give a wedding dress to Stanley. Glitz Nashville is also giving a free tuxedo to Stanley's fiance.

"I know what the rules are, but sometimes we have to bend them," said Davis. "I just praise God they bent the rules for them to help my hero who saved my son's life."

Stanley's fiance told News4 Davis has given them hope in humanity again.

"I didn't know that," said Davis. "That's what the mission is. We're all out here to help one another. That's all part of our mission to be there for somebody else. With prayer, counseling and God being a healer, she'll do fine."

Garth posted about the heartwarming act of kindness on Facebook:

"So many things happened that lead to my life being spared at the Waffle House that night. This is the waitresses that asked Tre Swisha Sneed and I not to sit at the bar because she was washing dishes and didn't want the water to splash on us. That lead to us sitting where we sat and possibly saved our lives. My mother Vickie Davis tracked her down, found out she was getting married and got her this wedding dress. #GodsPlan #AntiochStrong #GodsFavorite"

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