This is the second time 4 K.I.D.S. Sake has had their catalytic converter stolen off their box truck in three months. And it's not only put a pause on their work, but they said it's cost them close to $10,000 in damages.
Theresa Watson says someone used a battery-powered tool to cut off the catalytic converter.
"It took us about two months just to get our trucks back on the road," Watson said.
Now they find themselves in the same situation. The cut, she says, was so precise that it cut the O2 sensors, damaging their entire exhaust system, which means they can't go collect food from grocery stores for their pantry.
"With doing food recovery pickups six days a week, just at the beginning of this month, with SNAP benefits not being funded, we saw 500 families the first week of November," Watson said. "As we're going into the holiday season, it's not just disappointing. It's devastating."
She says, over the summer, both of their box trucks were impacted, but says the people responsible were never caught.
She says they have taken pride in being able to provide items with shorter lifespans, like milk, fruit and vegetables, giving out full meals to families in need.
"We have enough to sustain our shelves, but that's not going to cover the produce or the dairy or those kind of things," Watson said.
Watson says they now park the other box truck off-site just for safety as they try to remain hopeful their mission can carry on.
"We're pretty strong. We're pretty tough; we're pretty resilient," Watson said. "However, it's scary because you don't know how many times this is going to happen."
Bolingbrook police did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the theft.
CoVantage Credit Union is offering to match up to $10,000 in donations to the pantry during this upcoming Giving Tuesday.