Anonymous family replenishes stolen tip jar money from Camden restaurant
CAMDEN, Maine (WABI) - Staff at Boynton Mckay on Main Street in Camden are in the midst of their busy summer season.
Brian Beggarly bought the community staple eight years ago.
During the pandemic, he was forced to lay off some of his employees, which was the reality for many in the food industry.
Right now, he has four full-time employees who all wear many hats to keep the restaurant going.
“We kind of all shift around where, like, we’ll run out of plates, and someone will hop in the dish pit and clear out all the dishes, or there’s a ton of coffee drinks, so someone will stop taking orders and make all the coffee drinks,” he said.
Last Sunday was one of their busiest days this summer. When the crew finally got a chance to stop and take a breath, they noticed money was gone from their tip jar near the register.
“Oftentimes, especially on Sunday when the bank is not open, we’ll change out the dollars and fives and things out of the tip jar for bigger bills, and somebody noticed a humongous amount of money missing,” Beggarly said.
Beggarly would not disclose how much was taken but says that is a real hit to his employees. Anyone who works in a restaurant knows tips are the icing on the cake.
“Unfortunately, a lot of people in this industry work paycheck to paycheck,” he said. “If you need something, it’s better to ask than to take. My parents raised me to be a generous, kind person, and when people are going through hard times, which a lot of people are right now, I certainly would have sent them on their way with a lot of food as well.”
Thankfully, a kind family helped replenish the stolen tips.
Beggarly says he is grateful for their generosity, posting to social media, “Whoever needs the money badly enough to steal from a group of people doing the job of 16 hands with 8, karma might not knock on your door today or tomorrow, but she will.”
This is the second time in eight years someone has stolen from the tip jar at the restaurant.
Beggarly hopes it will not happen again.
“I don’t want them to return the money,” said Beggarly. “I just want them to do better with themselves moving forward. We are understaffed, overworked, and it’s hot. I think a little patience, or a lot of patience, can go a long way in general, but especially with people working in the service industry right now.”
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