Stolen Ansonia Donation Box To Be Replaced

The Valley Community Foundation is giving $250 to replace the donation box that was stolen from the Ansonia Nature and Recreation Center last weekend.

The donation will also cover the money that was in the box.

Someone broke a window, entered the Nature Center and ripped the donation box off a wall to which it was bolted.

Just how much money was in the donation box is not known. Click here to read the initial report from The CT Post.

The crime shocked the staff and volunteers at the Nature Center, said Donna Lindgren, the center’s director.

People had previously tampered with the box, which was shaped like a bird house, but no one ever had the gaul to rip it off.

“These are desperate times I suppose,” Lindgren said.

James Cohen, president of The Valley Community Foundation, credited Lindgren turning the Ansonia Nature Center into a regional destination for families and schools. 

“It’s become a model for ecology and nature programs and a lot of that has to do with Donna and the people she has there,” Cohen said.

He too, couldn’t believe someone stole the donation box. Cohen made a few phone calls seeking permission — and the donation was on its way.

“We can respond. There is no bureaucracy here. I called the executive committee, they agreed with me,” Cohen said.

Lindgren was happy to see the community respond and was grateful to The Valley Community Foundation.

The money is the donation box usually comes from people who bring in orphaned or injured animals for the Nature Center to nurse back to health.

In July, after a rash of vandalism at parks in Seymour, The Valley Community Foundation also stepped up and gave $500 for repairs.

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