Pastor Opens Storage Unit And Discovers Thief Stole Toys For 6,000 Kids But Community Generosity Prevails

Dec 29, 2019 by apost team

Christmas may be over, but it is important to remember all the good that comes with the holiday season. Last year, a church in Connecticut found the joy of giving in one of the darkest times in the history of their congregation.

The Greater Bridgeport Christian Fellowship planned a massive surprise for the children and families of Bridgeport. For close to two months, the church had been collecting and organizing toys for their local Toys for Tots program.

According to the CT Post, when it came time to distribute the 1,000 toys among 6,000 needy children, volunteers with the congregation placed them into six storage containers in the churchyard on a chilly December night. In total, Greater Bridgeport Christian Fellowship had collected about $80,000 worth of toys, reports the CT Post.

apost.com

Everything seemed right with the world until Pastor Eric Torres returned to the church the next morning. During the night, thieves had broken into four of the six storage containers, stealing every toy they could find.

Pastor Torres told NBC Connecticut that he and his congregation were understandably heartbroken by the disturbing development. Not only had the thieves thrown a wrench into the work that the church had been doing for two months, they had also ruined the Christmas dreams of the children of Bridgeport.

Even though all seemed to be lost, the people of Bridgeport would not let the thieves spoil the Christmases of needy children. The community quickly banded together as hundreds of people donated money and toys to the congregation. By far the biggest donor was 36-year-old businessman Lucas Burnley. Lucas told ABC13 that he was heartbroken to hear of the theft, which reminded him of all the times he received gifts from Toys for Tots at Christmas in his youth.

Determined to help Greater Bridgeport Christian Fellowship, Lucas and his wife loaded a truck up with $45,000 worth of toys and drove the 200 miles from their hometown of Orleans, Massachusetts to the church in Bridgeport. Pastor Torres was humbled by the generosity shown to his church, telling ABC13 that the hearts of his congregants are full and that they are eager to distribute the toys to needy children.

While Lucas has been praised for his charitable giving, he told ABC13 that it is simply the right thing to do and that parents should not have to choose between giving their children a gift and paying the bills at Christmas time.

What do you think of how Lucas and his wife donated $45,000 worth of toys to Greater Bridgeport Christian Fellowship after they were robbed by thieves?