80-year-old has car ransacked, community rallies to help

JULIA WADE

22 Nov, 2021

Mangawhai’s benevolent community spirit was well illustrated recently, when locals dug deep and gave generously to help right the wrong inflicted on a senior resident’s vehicle.

Friend to 80-year-old Val, Sharan McNaughton says the 1991 Toyota Corolla was broken into on November 14 while parked outside a house in Margaret Street, Mangawhai Heads. The perpetrators broke the rear quarter window, jimmied the ignition ‘and, in the process, damaged the dashboard panel’ and rummaged through the glove box.

Sharan was so incensed by the vandalism, she posted a message on local social media describing the break-in and took aim at the perps, saying ‘the car belongs to a woman in her 80's… the reason you didn't find anything to steal is because she owns very little of value… and now has to find the money to pay for the window to be replaced, which won't be easy on her fixed income. Shame on you!’

Naturally moved and angered by the crime, the community responded, gifting over $1100 towards the repairs of Val’s car, as well as offers of help, with North Glass supplying and fitting the replacement window free of charge, Jackson Brown Auto & Marine donating their labour to replace the dashboard once sourced, and ‘George’ of MCN Property Solutionz clearing the vandal’s mess and organising repairs.

Support of a more personal nature has also been given, with Homes and Hobbies offering Val a free gift of her choosing from the shop and Te Arai Berries gifting four punnets of their delicious strawberries. Sharan says that any money left over from the car repair is also being given to Val to spend as she wishes.

“What a fabulous community we have, it’s been amazing! Thank you so much everyone for your donations and messages of support.”

On behalf of Val, Sharan also had a message to relate: “To my loving and caring community, thank you so much for your kindness and generosity. I am so overwhelmed, I hope someday I can do the same for someone else when the need arises. Again, thank you, you don't know how much I appreciate all this.”