A flip of the coin:
After thieves hit, parishioners strike back, donate $7,800 to school children’s fund
By John Shaughnessy
Pat Witt couldn’t believe it when she learned that thieves had stolen a huge bank of coins that school children at her Indianapolis parish had donated to help children in Africa.
As the news of the theft spread through St. Matthew the Apostle Parish, so did the shock and anger that someone would stoop so low as to steal about $400 from a fundraiser that has become an annual tradition at the school.
“It was gut-wrenching to think someone would walk off with the coins the kids had collected,” says Witt, the parish’s pastoral associate.
Yet from that unthinkable act has come an equally stunning response of generosity from a parish that wasn’t willing to let the thieves steal something special from its children.
The story began in early Lent—at the beginning of the school’s spring break—during either the late night of March 25 or the early morning of March 26, according to Father Paul Shikany, the pastor of St. Matthew Parish.
Since the beginning of Lent, a huge container had been placed inside the church so children could donate their coins to help Dr. Ellen Einterz care for children who live in the African country of Cameroon. A physician who grew up in St. Matthew Parish, Einterz has spent more than 20 years in Africa, trying to bring hope and health care to a land devastated by endless cases of malaria, malnutrition, cholera and AIDS.
The huge container—which had a sign that read, “Coins for Cameroon”—was placed near a framed picture of Pope Benedict XVI.
“The school children really got involved with it through the years,” Witt says. “It even became a little competition among the classes to see who could raise the most money.”
When Father Shikany discovered the container of coins was missing, he initially thought that someone associated with the parish had taken it to count the money. Yet when he found that no one had, he called the police.
“The container itself weighs about 150 pounds, and we figure there was about $400 in it,” he says. “It’s so big and awkward that you had to have more than one person to lift it. And you’d need a truck to put it on. You couldn’t get it in the back seat of a car.”
Father Shikany also called Corrine Einterz, the mother of Ellen Einterz, to tell her what had happened.
“She told me, ‘Hopefully, they needed the money more than the kids of Cameroon did,’ ” Father Shikany recalls.
He also shared the news of the theft with parishioners during Masses on the weekend of March 31 and April 1. He never expected what happened next.
“It was just to let people know, and then all of a sudden this generosity came out,” he says. “A number of people said they wanted to make up for it. They asked how much was in it. I said about $400. One man wrote a check for $400. Another wrote a check for $1,000. Then we got a second check for $1,000. Ultimately, we had over $7,800 in two weekends.”
When Father Shikany later shared that news with parishioners at Mass, it was greeted with smiles and applause. That reaction was shared by the Einterz family.
“Obviously, it turned out very well,” says Corrine Einterz. “People just stepped forward and did much more than what was ever collected. It was great. I sent an
e-mail to Ellen and her first comment was, ‘Holy cow!’ She was thrilled.”
After hearing the news from her mother, Ellen Einterz sent an e-mail to the parish. She said the money will be used to help AIDS patients, and provide malaria protection for pregnant women and their eventual newborn children.
“I wish I could personally thank everyone who contributed,” she wrote. “As you know, sometimes all it takes is a few dollars to get someone going again. And just as every single patient is precious to us, so too is every single donor. A big ‘thank you’ to all!” †