Kansas restaurant’s brilliant response to thieves who raided employees’ tip jar

Hats off to the staff of a pizza restaurant in Kansas who managed to make the best of a bad situation after their staff’s tip jar was stolen.

On an otherwise ordinary Friday evening, teenage thieves took employees’ hard-earned tips from a bowl on the counter of Stone Oven Pizza in Wichita Falls.

But as the perpetrators made their way out, they left behind a Justin Bent Rail cowboy hat, size 7 1/8, usually worth at least $100 or more.

So instead of dwelling on the theft, co-owner Ryan Thomas came up with a unique idea: auction off the cowboy hat and donate the proceeds to the three employees who lost their tips.

Thomas announced the auction Stone Oven Facebook pagesharing the story of the theft, along with photos of the hat that was left behind.

‘Last night our crew encountered an incident where teenagers were stealing tips from the tip jar… But luckily they left this hat behind… We’re not big fans of hats here, but we know what a beautiful community Wichita Falls is, and we would like to open an auction…’ the restaurant wrote.

‘The highest bidder on Tuesday afternoon will win the prize of this authentic cowboy jicama-giga! All proceeds will be divided equally among the three team members who caught up on Tips last night!’

Within hours, the post received 20,000 impressions and an outpouring of support from the community.

Last Friday evening, teenage thieves stole employees’ hard-earned tips from a bowl left on the counter of Stone Oven Pizza

Bidding for the hat on Stone Oven’s Facebook page closes at noon on Tuesday

As of Monday evening, the bid for the cowboy hat was $160, but dozens of others offered to raise additional money to make up for lost tips.

Thomas heard about the theft just as the restaurant was closing. ‘I heard it around midnight. It’s frustrating, but we decided to turn it into something positive,” he told the newspaper Times Record News.

‘I didn’t think it would blow up like this. It’s really great that the community has responded so adamantly,” Thomas admitted.

The reactions were as colorful as the situation itself. Many commentators speculated about the so-called “cowboy” fleeing the scene, with one poster noting, “It’s almost impossible for me to believe that a ‘real’ cowboy would reduce himself to stealing someone’s tip money.”

Another suggested that the term “drugstore cowboy” might be more appropriate.

Thomas has reported the incident to the police, but remains optimistic about the whole case.

“Hopefully they get some decent punishment,” he wrote, adding: “Again, we got the hat, so we kind of won?”

Thomas was quick to dismiss calls for harsh punishment for the teens.

The thieves left behind a Justin Bent Rail cowboy hat, size 7 1/8, which is usually worth at least $100

So far, $160 has been bid for the hat, which will be distributed to the workers whose tips were stolen

The auction has become a symbol of resilience for Stone Oven Pizza and its employees

“Cheering for teenagers going to prison is not really our message,” he said.

Instead, he suggested a more appropriate consequence: “They should spend an evening waiting tables so they understand the work of the individuals they stole from.”

The auction has become a symbol of resilience for Stone Oven Pizza and its employees.

“This was just a real reminder that the community has our backs and our employees,” Thomas said. “When something bad happens, Wichita Falls is there to pull together.”

The auction deadline closes at noon on Tuesday and the proceeds from the auction will be distributed to the employees whose tips were stolen.