Guest Steals From Fund Designated for Charity Donations at Disney Park

Despite its majestic facade, each Disney attraction has seen its share of unhinged behavior. This specific incident took place at Disneyland Park’s “it’s a small world” attraction.

With multiple brawls breaking out at Disney’s Magic Kingdom, belligerent guests shutting down Casey’s Corner, and influencers live-streaming attractions like Under the Sea – Journey of the Little Mermaid, Cast Members can’t always curtail unruly crowd members.

Disney Parks have long been a “safe” space for enthusiasts who plan a Disney vacation to escape life’s harsh realities. While there are plenty of Good Samaritan stories of Disney guests rallying to help one another, there seem to be more alarming situations rising to the top of the news cycle since guests returned to the parks after COVID-19.

Stealing a Disney Attraction Tradition

Formerly known as “Children of the World,” “it’s a small world” was allegedly designed as a “salute” to UNICEF (United Nations Children’s Fund).

When the fan-favorite attraction opened at Disneyland on May 28, 1966, Walt Disney invited children from all over the globe to the ride dedication. During the ceremony, children poured water from their home countries into the attraction’s water, adding depth to its unifying intention.

Since then, guests have dropped coins into the symbolic water, and Cast Members have donated the collected coins to a charity, upholding Disney’s nod to UNICEF in its creation.

With heartwarming sentiments behind the historic ride, a Disneyland Resort guest was appalled when they noticed another guest stealing from the ride.

On Reddit, u/Just_Celebration1549 shared a video from the scene:

People have a tradition of throwing coins into the Small World moat, and this has gone on since Opening Day. Disney supposedly donates the money to local charities. This class act spent the entire ride fishing change out of the water.

Stealing coins from Small World
byu/Just_Celebration1549 indisneyparks

Despite the Cast Members repeatedly urging guests to keep their legs and arms inside the ride vehicle at all times, this Guest defied the rules to snatch change from the water.

Equally infuriated guests raced to the comments to add their takes on the unfortunate situation, and a few, like u/TheLastGunslinger, punctuated the danger involved:

Great way to get a couple grand medical bill in exchange for those coins when the boat crushes your arm…

The original poster didn’t include whether or not the guest was reprimanded for stealing the coins while reaching outside the ride vehicle.

Unfortunately, they’re likely not the first or last to do so, and posts like these help remind guests of the attraction’s significance—historically and for the organizations they contribute to.