PINELLAS COUNTY, Fla. — A charity group in Pinellas that helps the homeless get back on their feet now hopes the community will help them get a new van.
Pinellas Hope says Saturday night, the van they use to transport nearly 400 homeless people to doctor appointments, job interviews and food pantries, was smashed up and whoever did it never stopped.
"The van was actually parked here and it was pushed out into the road,” said Danielle Husband, the Supervisor for Pinellas Hope. "I’m just not sure it’s going to be repairable at this point.”
Husband says the 2004 Chevy Venture is crucial to their operations.
"It’s utterly priceless because I have people depending on this every single day, so to tell somebody we can’t take them to an appointment, that’s heartbreaking,” she said. "The bumper has been pulled off, we lost the tail light, it looks like this metal is all bent, the glass was blown out."
They hope whoever did it has the heart to admit it and are working closely with the Pinellas Park police department to track them down.
Husband believes the crash happened sometime between 8:30 and 9 PM and would like to talk with whoever was behind the wheel of a semi truck seen driving near that area, to see if they saw anything.
“We’re doing what we can to figure it out, but this definitely impacts our ability to make a different for our clients and residents this year," she said.
Meanwhile, they hope the community could help them get another van.
All donations to Catholic Charities and Pinellas Hope are tax deductible and spent entirely within the organization. Husband says you can contact her directly at dhusband@ccdosp.orgor office: (727) 556-6397, Cell: (813) 650-5516.
