By CASEY NEILL
THIEVES have stolen $2000 from Dandenong’s most needy.
Dandenong and District Benevolent Society members arrived to find their Thomas Street opportunity shop and headquarters ransacked on Thursday morning.
“They’ve taken all our food vouchers, all our money, petrol vouchers … ” secretary Barbara Siddall said.
“Anything that they could lay their hands on.
“It is shocking.
“The treasurer walked in and found all the mess. They’d been in the office and thrown everything everywhere.”
Ms Siddall said the store had “a big heavy door at the back that was battered down”.
“It’s a rotten thing to do,” she said.
“People who’ve been calling up, we can’t help them.”
She said the volunteer group gave about $72,000 worth of food away last year, plus other goods.
Fiona Melville manages the shop each Thursday and said police had taken fingerprints from the scene and thieves had broken into a filing cabinet.
“We’ve had $2000 worth of vouchers stolen,” she said.
“They trashed the place. They threw stuff everywhere. There was no need for that.
“They’ve used behind the counter as a toilet.”
Ms Melville said some groceries from Foodbank were untouched, but the vouchers allowed people to supplement the parcels with meat and vegetables.
“We’ve got nothing like that now,” she said.
“Who would steal from a charity?”
She said Dandenong and District Benevolent Society mainly assisted new immigrants, the homeless and other people who “needed a hand from time to time”.
It provides food, emergency relief and support programs to alleviate stress on household and personal budgets and strives to make sure families and individuals receive adequate daily nutrition.
The group aims to develop sustainable and resilient individuals and communities.
It now needs donations to continue its good work.
“Any help people can give us would mean a lot,” Ms Melville said.
“There are good people left out there.”
People can drop goods in reasonable condition at the shop, or arrange for volunteers to pick up larger items.
Take donations to 305 Thomas Street, Dandenong, or call 9793 3736.
