Thieves have knowingly stolen the Christmas gifts of childhood cancer patients, a local charity says

San Antonio – A charity that works with childhood cancer patients in the San Antonio area said thieves who stole thousands of dollars worth of toys for a holiday event knew who they were hurting.

BIG love for cancer care San Antonio Program Director Amber Woodworth told KSAT that someone broke into one of the charity’s storage units near Interstate 10 and Wurzbach Road and stole about 20 bins full of toys, worth at least $2,500. That was the bulk of the toys the charity had collected over the past year for its annual ‘Holiday Shoppe’ event in December.

“They took kids this year who had toys under their Christmas tree,” Woodworth said.

Several “My Chemo Fairy” dolls and book sets were left behind – apparently the only toys the thieves didn’t want. Small pillows meant to cover chemotherapy ports were untouched, and there were numerous signs in the unit with the charity’s logo and photos of childhood cancer patients to whom they were dedicated, including some who have died.

“That hurt me the most was that they saw who they were taking it from and did it anyway,” Woodworth said.

According to a San Antonio police report, the theft is believed to have occurred between October 15 and 23. Woodworth said they only discovered the theft on Wednesday after the storage location manager noticed a different lock on their device and called her.

After cutting the lock, Woodworth made the surprising discovery of the toy theft.

BIG Love works with families throughout Texas, but these toys were intended for families in the San Antonio area. The charity typically serves about 50 to 60 families at the Holiday Shoppe each year, she said, including hundreds of children.

The families, all dealing with the battle against childhood cancer, often have “financial and mental challenges,” she said, and BIG Love lays out the gifts and lets families “shop” for them for free. The gifts are then wrapped and taken to their cars.

“It’s a wonderful thing,” Woodworth said of the Holiday Shoppe. “And so it’s just devastating: two months away from the event, a huge part of that was taken from us.”

The group posted a Facebook message about the theft Thursday, asking for help through donations or registrations for a pickleball tournament next weekend.

Woodworth said they have already received about 80 toys since the mail.

SAPD confirmed no one has been arrested yet, but Woodworth had a message for whoever the thief or thieves may be.

“I’m so sorry you thought it was okay to steal from children dealing with cancer,” she said. “Everyone in life I know has been affected by cancer, whether it is an aunt, a friend or a family member. And to know that these babies face being poked and prodded every day to get better, and you took something that would bring them a smile this Christmas.