Merced nonprofit receives donation after thieves stole backpacks, school supplies

A Valley nonprofit has donated to the LifeLine Community Development Corporation after thieves last week stole backpacks and school supplies meant for children in the community.

After hearing of the theft, the Carlos Vieira Foundation took action and pledged to donate $1,000 to replace the backpacks and other items meant for children community children in need, according to a news release.

“As soon as I read the article, I new we had to act,” said founder Carlos Vieira in the release.

“Our non-profit efforts are much the same. We aim to help children in the community with outreach programs through our Race for Autism, Race 2B Drug Free and Race to End The Stigma. We want to support other organizations that are doing good in the community as well as that together we can all make a difference.”

Monika Grasely, executive director of Lifeline Community Development Corporation, said in the release the gift from the Carlos Vieira Foundation will be a great help, by allowing the group to repurchase the backpacks and supplies that were stolen.

In addition, a Facebook fundraiser page has been created for the Lifeline Community Development Corporation of Merced County following the break in. The website currently shows that $1,620 has been raised over the past three days.

The donations come five days after the thieves stole the backpacks, which also contained school supplies for the children.

Grasley previously told the Sun-Star that she arrived Sunday, Feb. 16 to check on the group’s facility next to Gateway Community Church. She found that the items had been stolen and someone had smashed a hole in the side of the group’s storage pod.

Anyone looking to assist Lifeline Community Development Corporation can also reach the group through their website, www.lifelinecdc.org or through their Facebook page.