Recent thefts at Thunder Bay, Ont., charities reflect crimes of desperation, organizations say

Sarah Law · CBC News

· Posted: Jul 09, 2025 4:00 AM EDT | Last Updated: 8 hours ago

When Michelle Murdoch-Gibson arrived astatine the Rowan Tree Collective successful Thunder Bay, Ont., connected Monday, she discovered a brownish spot of writer and a severed cablegram successful the yard.

Then, she realized that was wherever the organization's barbecue utilized to be.

"Obviously during the clip we were off, idiosyncratic came and snipped the cablegram that was securing our barbecue and took it away," she said. "It was connected wheels, truthful I conjecture that made it easier."

The non-profit, which supports adults with autism and different neurodiversity, posted astir the theft Monday afternoon. Within a fewer hours, aggregate radical offered to donate their aged barbecues oregon acquisition a replacement.

Real property broker Vince Mirabelli and his nephew, Alex, ended up ordering the organization's caller barbecue.

"It's bittersweet that someway our barbecue has disappeared but there's a definite metallic lining knowing that determination are truthful galore bully folks successful the assemblage who privation to assistance us," Murdoch-Gibson said.

Rowan Tree Collective isn't the lone foundation to look theft this summer. In precocious June, Our Kids Count saw its sod stolen from its yard.

"Everyone's moving for a communal origin to assistance retired these charities and past this benignant of worldly happens," Mirabelli said. "It's disheartening for the foundation but I deliberation it's besides disheartening for the metropolis arsenic a whole, that this continues to happen."

Our Kids Count supports children and families successful fiscal request done workshops including parenting and beingness skills, nutrient and nutrition, and pre and post-natal support.

John Trevisanutto, trader main astatine Half-Way Motors Nissan Ltd., has been a long-time protagonist of the organization. He explained the sod was being laid down to facilitate the operation of a caller playground, and idiosyncratic broke the fastener to bargain it.

After posting astir the theft online, helium said 4 antithetic companies offered to regenerate the sod for free. 

"That benignant of restores your religion successful humanity," Trevisanutto said.

Our Kids Count has spent a batch of wealth connected fencing, information cameras and locks, helium said, but determination is lone truthful overmuch that tin beryllium done to forestall incidents from occurring.

"There's a existent deficiency of respect for spot and a batch of hopeless people," helium said. "That wealth that was spent connected fencing could person fed a batch of people."

Mental health, addictions astatine play

Mirabelli is moving with Bay Lock and Security to get a amended fastener strategy successful spot astatine the Rowan Tree Collective to forestall the caller barbecue from being stolen. Meanwhile, the Thunder Bay Police Service (TBPS) is sharing proposal to assistance others debar spot theft.

"Property transgression is an ongoing interest and it's troubling for those affected, but peculiarly erstwhile it's affecting these types of non-profit organizations," said TBPS media relations co-ordinator Matt Vis.

"They're doing their champion to marque a affirmative quality successful the community, often person constricted resources, and truthful erstwhile thing similar this happens to them, it tin beryllium rather a setback and it's precise devastating, frankly, for the community."

The constabulary work encourages radical to support their valuables locked up oregon hidden arsenic overmuch arsenic possible. They're besides urged to support a grounds of serial numbers for items specified arsenic bicycles, which makes it easier to way them if they're stolen.

"There's ever the enactment to instal surveillance cameras. Those tin enactment not lone arsenic a deterrent for imaginable thefts if radical spot them posted connected a residence oregon a building, but if determination is to beryllium an incidence of theft, that tin besides supply invaluable grounds that whitethorn beryllium utilized successful a aboriginal investigation," Vis said.

As for the origin of crimes similar these, Vis said determination are galore factors.

"We are a assemblage that faces important challenges astir intelligence wellness and addictions, and we cognize rather often that radical that are experiencing those challenges volition edifice to transgression arsenic a mode to conscionable their needs," helium said.

Linda Bruins astatine Evergreen A United Neighbourhood said she sees this firsthand. The organization, which runs a younker drop-in centre successful the Simpson-Ogden neighbourhood, has had ongoing challenges with radical utilizing substances and leaving cause paraphernalia connected the property.

Evergreen has spent thousands of dollars connected information measures, including fencing successful the yard, information cameras and installing a alloy doorway — which was donated — with a heavy-duty fastener aft repeated break-ins. 

"I deliberation we person to commencement connecting much with radical and attraction astir our neighbours, keeping an oculus retired connected them," Bruins said. "I deliberation we've mislaid that implicit time."

Improving people's consciousness of societal inclusion and assemblage belonging is key, she said, and thing she's seen diminution since the COVID-19 pandemic.

"We person to look immoderate hard issues and we each person to enactment unneurotic to marque it better," Bruins said.

Trevisanutto said helium suspects addiction is down galore of the city's thefts, though helium empathizes with those dealing with substance abuse.

"All you tin bash is marque definite you support things secure, monitored and locked up. That's it. And erstwhile you're retired determination successful the assemblage trying to help, you [have] got to beryllium cautious you're not excessively judgmental oregon you'll conscionable halt doing what you do," Trevisanutto said.

Back astatine the Rowan Tree Collective, Murdoch-Gibson said her squad isn't letting the caller theft dampen their spirits. The enactment has a fig of events planned for the summer, including outdoor lunches, fittingness programming, and a tie-dye league with a consequent manner show.

"We're getting folks outside, giving them entree to bully carnal activity, practicing beingness skills, making our ain lunches, having tons of societal opportunities with their adjacent group, truly giving immoderate purposeful, meaningful activities to their days," she said.