Illustrator CC crashes when using Find and Replace

I have an .AI file which has been set up to be used as a template.  The normal process we use is to open the .AI file, use "Find and Replace" to substitute wildcard characters for the data entries (e.g.; *, $, #, etc. for a name or address), save the file as an EPS, then undo the changes and repeat the process for the next file.

The process worked great for a while, but after a recent update of Illustrator CC, after the second use of "Find and Replace" the application crashes.  The point at which the crash occurs is after all the changes have been made and I hit "Done" in the dialog box.  This same issue is affecting several other artists in my office.  Is there a way around this issue that will still allow us to use the "Find and Replace" functionality?