Hats off the staff of Stone Oven Pizza in Wichita Falls, Tex., who have managed to make the best of a bad situation. On an otherwise ordinary Friday evening, teenage thieves swiped the employee tip jar that was sitting on the front counter. As the culprits made their getaway, they left behind a Justin Bent Rail cowboy hat worth at least $100. Instead of stewing over the theft, co-owner Ryan Thomas (pictured) came up with a unique response: auction off the cowboy hat and donate the proceeds to the employees who lost their gratuities. Thomas announced the auction on social media, sharing the story of the theft and a picture of the hat left behind. Within hours, the post garnered 20,000 comments and an outpouring of support from the community. After the posting, Thomas received a phone call from the owner of the hat. It turns out that the teens had broken into his truck and stolen the hat before they hit the pizza parlor. As a result, the hat was returned to its rightful owner, and Thomas made sure that the employees received $50 bonuses. That’s not bad compared to the $20 the teens managed to snatch from the tip jar.
