The Victoria Film Festival is out almost $2,500 after 434 glasses were stolen from its biggest fundraiser of the year.
Art of the Cocktail raises about $30,000 for the film festival.
At this year's event, held Oct.4 at Crystal Gardens, each person was given a small liqueur glass for the night.
“They get a glass so that they go around with it and sample the different cocktails that people are making, and then we collect them at the end because we just rent them,” said Kathy Kay, Victoria Film Festival director.
But of the 900 glasses rented from Pedersens Rentals, only 466 were left behind. The cost to replace each glass is $5.65, totalling $2,452.10.
Although Pedersens negotiated a lower number with the film festival, the cost is still a major blow to what is meant to be a fundraiser. Anyone who took glasses from the event is asked to return them, no questions asked.
“The rental company is prepared even if six months from now we’re still bringing back glasses they’ll reimburse us,” Kay said. “We’ll put a table up in the front hall, just come in, drop your glasses off and leave. We would just really appreciate getting them back.”
Kay said there was an issue with stealing last year as well, but instead of 434 glasses going missing, they were short 68 glasses at the end of the night.
As for next year, Kay plans to rent glasses that will hopefully be less appealing to steal.
“[We’ll] definitely get uglier glasses. Ugly and big,” she said.
Although organizers do not want to have to check people’s bags on the way out, having guests steal from a fundraiser is disheartening, Kay said.
“It’s very upsetting.”
Other than the glass incident, Kay said the event went well.
“We had a record crowd,” said Kay, adding there were just under 800 people at the event.