NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WTVF) — It's a theft that's sidelined a group trying to help children.
Folks at the Al Menah Shrine Temple discovered this week someone swiped a catalytic converter from a van meant to take kids to Shriner's Childrens Hospitals out of state, and cut through a second one on another van.
"It's sad because it's not the money but it's the downtime for the kids, and it's the kids who suffer," said Fred Lysak, Potentate of the Al Menah Shrine Temple.
The vans will likely be inoperable for a week, sidelining the group who is now spending time trying to recover from the theft.
"Most of my day I've been contacting insurance and body shops and it just takes away from stuff like this, what we could be doing for the children," said Horace Perkins, the Al Menah Shrine Temple Recorder.
Still, Horace and Fred say no matter what, they'll be looking forward to continuing their mission as soon as they can.
"Let's get the vans going again so we can keep doing what we do best, look after our kids," Fred said.
I LOVE Forrest's stories on the history of NewsChannel 5 as we celebrate our 70th anniversary. Here's a story I wasn't familiar with until recently. Eudora Boxley had a live cooking show in the early days of the station. She may have been the first black on air at NewsChannel 5 and perhaps, one of the first African Americans to have a TV cooking show anywhere in the country. It wasn't until her grandson reached out to me that I even heard of Ms. Boxley. Thankfully, I was able to connect him with Forest to learn more about this great nugget in NewsChannel 5 history.
-Lelan Statom
