Wedding venue criticized for keeping dead man’s $18K deposit

A wedding venue in North Carolina is reportedly refusing to return a deposit after the groom died five months before his big day — sparking outrage online and calls for compassion.

Christopher Perry, a Durham resident, proposed to his fiancée, Kristen Seidel, in Italy in 2024. The couple booked The Cotton Room for Oct. 11, 2025, and paid over $18,000 in deposits for food, drinks and rental fees — about half the total contract, WRAL reported. 

On May 12, 2025, a day before his 33rd birthday, Perry collapsed and died. Within two days, the family notified the venue, part of TC Hospitality Group.

The company said the deposit was nonrefundable because it secured the date and covered “advance planning, staffing and operational commitments,” instead offering a partial refund only if the date was rebooked, which did not happen. 

Staff at the venue, which is a former textile mill, said it would keep the $7,500 rental deposit regardless and waived the remaining 50% balance of the total bill.

“They’re profiting off the death of my son,” Christopher Perry’s father, Bill Perry, said in an interview with WRAL as he sat alongside his wife, Sue Perry.

“No parent should ever have to experience the loss of a child – and having situations like The Cotton Room and what they’ve done or are doing just kind of keeps the wound open,” Perry added.

“They haven’t done anything, and they haven’t earned this money yet.”

His wife said the family couldn’t figure out what the venue would have spent the money on already. “They haven’t done anything, and they haven’t earned this money yet,” she said.

Fox News Digital reached out to TC Hospitality Group for comment.

The DJ, wedding planner and wedding photographer, meanwhile, all returned the deposits, according to the New Hampshire-based parents.

In a Facebook post, Sue Perry shared a personal plea with others. 

“How can a venue that specializes in the business of love, happiness and weddings have such a cold, cruel and compassionless response to this tragedy that my son’s family, fiancée and her family are dealing with?” she wrote. 

Since her son’s death, the owners have refused to have a call with the family, she added. 

Hundreds of people have taken to social media, Reddit and Google reviews in support of the couple and their family, with many urging the company to reconsider its decision. 

“Shocking for a family-run business,” one man wrote on Facebook.

“Atrocious,” one woman agreed. “They will lose more than that deposit. …. They have lost their reputation.”

“Legally, they’ve done nothing wrong. …. Have they done something morally wrong? Perhaps.”

However, in a Reddit group dedicated to Durham, some people defended the business for its decision.

“[Four to five] months is last minute,” one person wrote. “October is prime wedding season in North Carolina. …. Not surprising they couldn’t fill a slot with only a few months’ notice.”

Someone else said, “Legally, they’ve done nothing wrong. …. Have they done something morally wrong? Perhaps.”

One wedding planner said that companies are relying on deposits.

Raleigh-based wedding planner Haines Jones, who is not affiliated with the family or venue, told WRAL that many businesses are “staying afloat on retainers” amid a post-pandemic slump. 

“I see both sides,” she added. “At the end of the day, I do think the family at least deserved a partial refund.”

The company told WRAL that payments made ahead of an event are not tied dollar-for-dollar to food and drink and noted that it waived the remaining 50% balance for the family.

“Deposits also support the advanced planning, staffing and operational commitments required to prepare for an event of this size,” Michelle Aldred, executive director of TC Hospitality, told the outlet.