Shameful!! Man caught on camera stealing church donations

The pastor said the man could have asked for help rather than taking from the donation shed.


A man stole several bags of clothing from a donation shed at a Festus church, and it was all caught on camera.
It happened Friday morning. Surveillance video provided by Bethel Free Will Baptist Church shows a man driving up to the donation shed on the church parking lot. He climbs into the chute, opens the door from the inside, and walks out carrying several bags of clothes.

The pastor's daughter Courtney Reynolds saw it happen.
"I thought at first they were dropping clothes, but I saw a door open and a man carrying several bags out to the backseat of his car," Reynolds said. She was with her young children and was afraid to approach the man. "It's very heartbreaking to think people have stooped so low to take things out of a donation box off of a church parking lot."

Pastor Michael Hoggard said he and his congregation prayed for the thief during Sunday services.
"People's trust in church and respect for churches has gone down significantly in my lifetime," Hoggard said. "And, it's sad."
A third party company operates the donation shed. The church, in turn, gets a fee based on how much is in the shed. The clothes are then distributed to charities' thrift stores.
The pastor and his daughter said they don't want the man to get in trouble. Rather, they want him to know there is help for him.
"If he did this because his family is in need, that God will provide for him and that he'll be forgiven, that they come to realize that stealing is not the way to go," Reynolds said.