Kenicia Francis
A local centre which provides vocational training and business advice to help vulnerable young people was the target of a devastating burglary over the weekend.
Helena Jeffrey Brown, a technical coordinator in the Department of Environment who works with the Gilbert Agricultural and Rural Development (GARD) Centre, discovered the damage from a break-in on her way into work yesterday.
“We found every door was broken and shattered. A steel door, with bolts that go up and to the side, was destroyed so that they could come in and steal literally everything,” she told Observer.
In addition to the 52 reportedly stolen items, the device that stores all the recorded footage from the centre’s security cameras was also stolen.
“These people came and stole our stoves, our fridges, our freezers, our mixers, the things that our students use to learn how to make a living, our AC units, our seedlings, our water fountain, our printer, our microwave, everything was stolen. Even some of the tables from the classrooms are gone,” Brown said.
She explained that the GARD Centre trains vulnerable individuals, providing life skills and work preparation for a fresh start in the job market.
This only further fuelled her disbelief that the venue was selected by criminals.
“How in heaven’s name are you going to steal from the people who are helping the vulnerable? We’re here to put people back on the road with a job, with a way to earn a living, with a way to hold their head upright and provide for their families. And you steal from us, try and devastate us,” Brown lamented.
Despite this setback however, she says they’re determined to rebuild and continue educating those less fortunate who need a second chance.
“It’s not impossible to build back, but it’s going to be hard because everything we have here we have earned through donations and grant funding and very hard fundraising. We are going to need the support of our stakeholders to come and help us to build back because we’re determined. We know that we make a difference in the world out there.
“We know we make a difference to our trainees, and it’s sad that we just started our training programme and we had to stop because of this devastation. So, we’re asking our stakeholders, our donors, to please reach out to us and help us build back so that we can be better than ever and serve even more vulnerable youth so that they can get back on their feet and make a difference,” she added.
Anyone wishing to help can call the centre on 463-4121.
