Server stunned after discovering $1700 ‘tip’ on table — when she took a closer look, she immediately called her manager
A person's honesty can take someone out of a difficult situation and make others really proud. Something similar happened when an honest waitress returned $1700 in cash, which seemed like a life-changing tip at first glance. But a customer had accidentally left the money on the table after paying for their meal and the waitress found it after they had left. Instead of keeping the money, she decided to tell her manager about the mishap, per the Portland Press Herald.
The waitress, Kaylie Cyr, saw the money on the table left behind by one of their regular customers and his friend. She immediately turned in the amount and told her manager what had happened. Cyr had realized that someone had left the money accidentally and not as a tip when she saw that the money was in an envelope with someone's name on it. The customers would have also pointed out that they were leaving the money for a tip, specifically if that had been their intention. Cyr didn't think of keeping the money even once and pointed out that she wouldn't have felt very good about it. "That would be a sweet tip [though]," she pointed out. On the other hand, the customer, Glenn Morse, had realized that his cash was missing and wasn't sure if he would get the money back.
Morse had left the money after he took the envelope out to pay for his meal at the Buffalo Wild Wings. The man realized that his money was missing the next morning and decided to drive to the restaurant in South Portland to see if anyone had found and returned the cash. He was quite surprised when the manager handed the money back to him. "Anyone passing by could have picked it up," Morse pointed out. He owned Morse Builders and cash was meant for payroll and business expenses. Cyr found the money and wanted to stay anonymous, which surprised the man and his friend, Ronnie Bates, even more. The duo came back to the restaurant in a week for their weekly wings and dinner and recognized Cyr as their waitress from the previous week. They asked her if she was the one who found it and she really tried to brush it off.
"She finally admitted she turned in the envelope. I told her I was really proud of her. That says something nowadays about someone’s character that they would do something like that. That $1,700 probably would have paid a lot of bills for her," Bates pointed out. Morse ended up giving $100 as a tip as a thank you. Cyr wasn't expecting a reward for what she did and explained that it "blew" her mind. "I was very impressed with her honesty. Not a lot of people would find an envelope of cash and have the grace to turn it in," Morse suggested.
"We're super proud of her. She sort of exemplifies the habits that make her an awesome employee," the restaurant's general manager, Louie Golden, told ABC News. "She has extremely good qualities that we look for in everybody we hire." Cyr remarked, "Absolutely, I would do the same thing if I found the money again. It definitely wouldn't feel right keeping the money if it belonged to someone else. I know if it were my money, I'd be happy if someone returned it to me, so that was kind of my incentive."