Winnipeggers keep Habitat for Humanity building despite thefts

WINNIPEG – Angry Winnipeggers are replacing $5,000 worth of tools stolen from the Habitat for Humanity home-building charity earlier this week.

“We live in an incredible city. The generosity of this community is remarkable,” Habitat for Humanity CEO Sandy Hopkins said on the Morning News Friday morning.

Thieves took the tools from two storage trailers at different Habitat construction sites on Aug. 10 and 17.

READ MORE: Thieves steal tools from Winnipeg Habitat for Humanity building site

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Habitat for Humanity put out a news release about the thefts on Monday and the response from Winnipeggers was immediate, Hopkins said.

“Literally the day after we put the media release out, we had people coming to the ReStore, coming to our office, dropping off tools,” he said.

Others called in donations, including longtime supporters who sent significant personal donations, and the charity’s corporate supporters Home Depot and PCL Construction have also stepped up.

“We’re in the process now of replacing everything that was stolen.”

A security expert is also helping create better security for the charity, which has never experienced a significant loss from theft before.

Hopkins feels the thieves would be wise to avoid Habitat tools in the future.

The news release put out on Monday asked people to watch habitat sites and call 911 if suspicious activity is seen, and Hopkins believes that will happen.

“People are just thoroughly ticked off that this would happen,” he said. “I think they would be wise to stay away from our sites going forward. Lots of people are looking after them for us.”