Someone broke into the Crystal Lake headquarters of the Salvation Army over the weekend, cut the locks on 22 collection kettles and stole up to $7,000 in holiday donations, police said Monday.
“They left us empty kettles,” said Capt. Cappy Moore, commanding officer of the Salvation Army’s Crystal Lake corps, which serves McHenry County.
Moore estimated that the donations, which had not been counted, totaled about $7,000, representing a sizable chunk of the organization’s $115,000 goal this year during its busiest fundraising season.
“When people are pulling together to help their community, you just don’t expect somebody to come in and take advantage,” said Cliff Marshall, a spokesman for the Metropolitan Division of the Salvation Army, which oversees 32 corps in the city and suburbs.
“It’s very unusual, especially to break into an actual Salvation Army building,” Marshall said. “It’s very unusual and very disturbing.”
Police estimated as much as 30 percent of the stolen money was in coins, said Crystal Lake Deputy Chief Dave Linder, who asked that banks and businesses be on the lookout for anyone using large amounts of change.
The donations were collected Saturday and locked in the kettle coordinator’s office that evening. The office was closed Sunday, and Salvation Army officials discovered the theft about 8:15 a.m. Monday.
Police said a window had been broken and an exterior door forced open at the building, 290 W. Crystal Lake Ave. Moore said someone apparently kicked in a door to an office, where they found keys to the room where the kettles were kept, which has a stronger door.
The money collected during the Christmas season helps needy families during the holidays, Moore said. But the donations also are important for programs throughout the year. For example, he said, one family recently was given clothing after a fire. Other programs help families pay rent and other bills.
Moore said that if the thief or thieves needed the money, they should have applied for help at the front door rather than breaking in through the back.
“If they have need, come to us and ask us,” he said. “We want to help. But if it’s a matter of greed, we just can’t help.”
Monday afternoon, a group of Crystal Lake women pulled up with food donations they had collected as part of their annual charity drive.
“If you’re that needy, there are plenty of places to go for help,” Debi Lindgren said when told of the break-in. “$7,000? That makes me just sick.”
Moore said he hopes the community will rally to make up the difference if the money is not recovered.
“It’s just really disheartening that someone would do this, rob needy families,” Moore said. “They’re not stealing from us. They’re stealing from families that would have benefited from this. I’m hopeful that we’ll overcome this.”
