LAGUNA BEACH

A Laguna Beach man who well knows the downside of life chose Monday to take the honest route with a wad of cash he found on a bank floor. Jack Stronsnider, 52, returned $30,000 to a teller at Bank of America in Laguna Beach after a woman dropped an envelope containing the money.

Stronsnider, who said he recently completed a six-month drug and alcohol rehabilitation program, and who lives in the back of an upholstery store showroom, visits the bank weekly to cash his paychecks from his job with the Salvation Army. Stronsnider said when he entered the building, he noticed a “fat, brown envelope” on a table and found several $100 bills inside. Stronsnider gave the envelope to a teller, who thanked him and notified her supervisor.

The money belonged to a woman who brought it in for an escrow payment. A few hours after the incident, the bank’s manager called Stronsnider and presented him two free dinner certificates to Red Lobster. Stronsnider said: “It wasn’t a decision; it was automatic. That made me realize how much I’ve changed. Nowadays, I try to be honest in my affairs.”