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'Nothing so low' as poppy box thefts
Eastview Legion vet dismayed by loss of donations
Ian Shelton The Ottawa Citizen Monday, November 10, 2008
For a war veteran who dedicates his time to helping others, there's little more disheartening than the theft of a pair of poppy boxes on the weekend before Remembrance Day.
"I've been in the Forces, and I just feel that there's nothing so low as to steal from these people," said Bert Meunier, the Eastview Legion's poppy chairman.
The Second World War veteran and long-time volunteer was dismayed to learn Saturday morning that two of the small white boxes had been stolen.
A volunteer reported to Mr. Meunier that a box had been stolen from the Beechwood Avenue Loeb store.
Mr. Meunier later learned that a clerk and a customer at the grocery store started yelling at a young man when they saw him slip a poppy box under his coat, but the suspect quickly exited the store and escaped on a white bicycle.
After a spotcheck of nearby poppy box locations, it was revealed that a box located at a Guardian pharmacy was missing as well.
He immediately reported the theft to Ottawa police, who have declined to comment on the matter.
The Legion won't know if any others are missing until all the boxes are collected today.
Mr. Meunier said it's hard to say how much money may have been taken.
"(The boxes) could have $10 in them, they could have three or four hundred dollars in them. We can't be sure," he said.
Eastview is not the only Legion to be robbed of poppy boxes this year.
Police are still searching for a woman who was filmed removing a poppy box from the counter of a Tim Hortons at the intersection of Hunt Club Road and Merivale Road on Nov. 1.
Mr. Meunier said that in a decade of volunteering for the poppy campaign, he's seen donations disappear from virtually every kind of place the boxes are typically located.
As a result, the Eastview Legion has been trying new security measures, such as collecting donation boxes more often and even taping boxes to the countertops.
He hopes that a concerted effort by police will put an end to these thefts.
"If (the police) caught some of these people and they were dealt with severely, this would stop."
Eastview Legion vet dismayed by loss of donations
Ian Shelton The Ottawa Citizen Monday, November 10, 2008
For a war veteran who dedicates his time to helping others, there's little more disheartening than the theft of a pair of poppy boxes on the weekend before Remembrance Day.
"I've been in the Forces, and I just feel that there's nothing so low as to steal from these people," said Bert Meunier, the Eastview Legion's poppy chairman.
The Second World War veteran and long-time volunteer was dismayed to learn Saturday morning that two of the small white boxes had been stolen.
A volunteer reported to Mr. Meunier that a box had been stolen from the Beechwood Avenue Loeb store.
Mr. Meunier later learned that a clerk and a customer at the grocery store started yelling at a young man when they saw him slip a poppy box under his coat, but the suspect quickly exited the store and escaped on a white bicycle.
After a spotcheck of nearby poppy box locations, it was revealed that a box located at a Guardian pharmacy was missing as well.
He immediately reported the theft to Ottawa police, who have declined to comment on the matter.
The Legion won't know if any others are missing until all the boxes are collected today.
Mr. Meunier said it's hard to say how much money may have been taken.
"(The boxes) could have $10 in them, they could have three or four hundred dollars in them. We can't be sure," he said.
Eastview is not the only Legion to be robbed of poppy boxes this year.
Police are still searching for a woman who was filmed removing a poppy box from the counter of a Tim Hortons at the intersection of Hunt Club Road and Merivale Road on Nov. 1.
Mr. Meunier said that in a decade of volunteering for the poppy campaign, he's seen donations disappear from virtually every kind of place the boxes are typically located.
As a result, the Eastview Legion has been trying new security measures, such as collecting donation boxes more often and even taping boxes to the countertops.
He hopes that a concerted effort by police will put an end to these thefts.
"If (the police) caught some of these people and they were dealt with severely, this would stop."
