SANTA MONICA—On June 9, Shell gas station manager, John Szczecina, made an error by posting the daily gas price on the sign as $0.69 a gallon compared to $6.99 a gallon. It cost the gas station owner thousands of dollars and Szczecina lost his job.
The error occurred at the Rancho Cordona station in Santa Monica. The mishap took place while gas prices are at an all-time high in the United States. Customers took advantage of the “sale” with long lines forming at the gas station.
“I made a mistake,” Szczecina told reporters, “And I thought, ‘This, is a nightmare,’ he said.
“I put all three prices on there, except the diesel. The last one kind of didn’t go. So, I just took responsibility for it and said yeah, it’s my fault, and I’m to blame,” Szczecina told ABC News Fresno station KFSN.
Szczecina indicated that he did not blame others for taking advantage of the low-priced gas, relaying that, he would have done the same. He started a GoFundMe to pay back the money lost to the gas station.
Paula Jackson, the sister of Szczecina, started a separate GoFundMe page for her brother stating, “My brother is John Szczecina…“We have been advised to put together a separate go fund me for him because he is raising all this money to give back to the gas company which he will do, but meanwhile he’s out of work.”
On June 15, Paula Jackson, Organizer of the GoFundMe, gave thanks to all the donors. Jackson was able to raise of $20,000. The recent list of donors shows 931 donations with the largest individual donation being $1,000.
“Thank you all who have donated and sent encouraging words! We are halfway there!
We are looking forward to giving the check to the owners of the Shell gas station. John is doing this because it is the right thing to do,” said Jackson.
