Cindy-Jo’s story is one of heartbreak and sorrow. Those with faint hearts should read no further.

Dot818 celebrates each new employee’s arrival with a company lunch at a restaurant across the street. But Cindy-Jo’s lunch never happened. Hers was the only one the company skipped – a fact that was brought up at every new hire lunch that followed.

Cindy-Jo’s forgotten lunch turned into a recurring joke. As we met to celebrate the arrival of a new employee, we’d all laugh about how Cindy-Jo’s lunch still hadn’t happened. Every now and then a tentative lunch for her would be put back on the schedule, only to get pushed back and forgotten until another member joined the team. As she attended their new hire lunches, she couldn’t help but wonder if hers would ever come.

As the months passed, the chance for Cindy-Jo to get a new hire lunch became slimmer and slimmer.

English historian Thomas Fuller once said, “It is always darkest just before the day dawneth.” Those words proved true for Cindy-Jo. Just when it looked like her welcome party had been forgotten forever, dot818 CEO David Tonoyan had a brilliant idea.

“Cindy-Jo,” he said, “we should turn your lunch into a dinner.”

Instead of celebrating her arrival at the low-key diner across the street, she was to be welcomed at the city’s finest steakhouse. Who could argue with that?

So last night the dot818 team met at Bourbon Steak by Michael Mina at The Americana at Brand to finally celebrate Cindy-Jo’s arrival … six months after she started.

Excited employees planned their meals early by peaking at the menu online and choosing from American Angus steaks, fresh from the sea fish, and roasted organic chicken.

Cindy-Jo had this to say about the meal: “Dinner with the team was definitely worth the wait. It’s always fun to see everyone relaxed, laughing, and enjoying themselves outside of the office.”

In the end, Cindy-Jo got the greatest welcome of all.

Maybe it’ll be the last new hire get-together we do. We were almost spilling out of the table at the restaurant, which lead to David to say, “We are getting too big. I think we should keep the tradition, but not tell the new people about it.”