Ex-manager loses job, has no money for food or rent
PETALING JAYA: Recently, a cartoon illustrating how a dedicated employee had fallen on hard times, went viral on social media.
The cartoon told the story of how one Lex had lost his job and was now appealing to kind Malaysians to help him and his family get through some of their darkest days brought on by the Covid-19 pandemic.
The “Lex” in question is Alexander Maria Soosai, 58, a former employee of Nicsmann 1940s, who became unemployed after the restaurant was forced to shut due to the numerous lockdowns.
Alexander may be a familiar face to the residents of Damansara Utama, as he was the outlet manager of Nicsmann 1940s at Starling Mall.
A veteran of the food and beverage industry, he has been serving customers with a smile ever since the 1980s and under his watchful eye, no diner ever went home dissatisfied.
A good number of online reviews sing praises of Alexander and his team.
One Bryan Tan writes, “I would say the service here is superb. We requested to move outdoors for our last beer, but Alexander offered us the private lounge instead.
“More importantly, he didn’t charge us extra for the private lounge and we just finished our last drink comfortably before leaving.”
Another review, by Yvonne Chean, reads, “Thank you to the team for the excellent experience, especially to Alex. Keep up the great work!”
In happier times, one might have spotted Alexander standing at the entrance of the restaurant, greeting passers-by and inviting them to a hearty meal within.
Managing the expectations of difficult customers aside, Alexander has many memorable moments of his time there.
“There was this lady who was passing by during lunchtime,” he recalls, “who asked if we had a set lunch available. I told her that we did, with broccoli soup included.”
“She said, ‘I love broccoli soup! But I have already had my lunch, so maybe I’ll drop by next time’. So, I said, ‘Why don’t you come in and I’ll give you broccoli soup since it’s your favourite.’”
While the woman was hesitant at first, Alexander decided to serve her the soup free of charge, after which she thanked him for the meal and went on her way.
In the coming weeks, she returned with increasingly bigger dining parties, eventually bringing a party of 30 to dine there.
Not only did Alexander lose his job when the pandemic hit, his wife lost hers too. As did his son who lives in Penang and is himself a father of one.
At present, Alexander and his family are surviving solely on the charity of friends and strangers, though how long he can keep a roof over their heads is anybody’s guess.
Despite his age, Alexander is willing to take up any job, though he hopes to continue his life’s calling, that of providing people with an excellent dining experience.
“I enjoy meeting new people, communicating with them, providing them services accordingly,” he tells FMT. “I just love interacting with people.”
This perk of the job was what drove him to do his best each and every day, despite how mentally and physically exhausting it could get.
Alexander says there were days when he’d spend up to four hours on his feet with no breaks in between, chalking up to 15,000 steps.
“After the first MCO, we opened for a bit, but business was not the same as before,” says Alexander. “And each MCO affected the business bit by bit.”
He was willing to bite the bullet to help keep his workplace alive, taking a salary cut and assembling a skeleton crew.
All Alexander’s efforts came to naught however, as the restaurant finally shut its doors for good in May.
“It was a big blow because I thought I would be here for a few more years, maybe until my retirement,” laments Alexander. “This MCO really shattered my plans and my dreams.”
Alexander has since been struggling to keep his family afloat with what little savings he has left, and at his most desperate, reached out to the White Flag Campaign.
“My job was not only a career to me,” says Alexander, “it has always been my passion to make customers happy with excellent service and food.” - FMT
Those you wish to help Alexander and his family can make a donation to his account in Maybank 1070-4103-3817 or by contacting him at 013-3254491.
✍ Credit given to the original owner of this post : ☕ Malaysians Must Know the TRUTH
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