The owner of a Wirral cafe has been "blown away" by a customer after thieves stole hundreds of pounds in cash from her business.
Suzanne Rippon, who owns The Quirky Cafe in Hoylake, "couldn't believe it" when she arrived at the Market Street premises on Friday morning (August 12) to find she had been broken into. The cafe is renowned within the local community as a hub that helps to support people in need.
Suzanne said the perpetrator likely gained entry through the window before they took around £200 in wages and donations for local charities from the till. She described the incident as "horrendous" and has "struggled" to process what happened.
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She told the ECHO : "I came in on Friday morning and it looked like they had crowbarred the window and took all our donations as well as all the wages and money out of the till. We promote a number of local businesses that have cash boxes under the counter and they were all taken as well.
“I didn’t believe it at first. It's not about the money, it's the fact that they've taken donations people have given us out of the kindness of their heart that got me more than anything.”
The Quirky Cafe is part of The Life Tree, a community interest company that aims to provide practical and emotional support in the local area. Director of the Life Tree Steph Fraser, said: "As a CIC, we’re not for profit and we’re relatively new and don’t have regular funding.
"We only ever asked for donations for the sessions that we run, but people are so kind and put donations into our tub so for them to have been taken, that’s really the sad part and has taken us back a few steps. Its such a focal point of Hoylake and everyone who comes in comes in for the friendly atmosphere and the support.”
In the wake of the incident, a GoFundMe was set up by customer Barbara Williams, 51, who wanted to give back to repay Suzanne and Steph for their extensive work to aid the community.
She said: “Suzanne has the biggest heart of gold. She does so much for the community. Every penny made goes towards the things she does in the community so when I heard about this I was gutted and felt like I needed to do something.
"I’ve been blown away by the response. Suzanne and the team are so loved and its nice people are helping to pay her back for everything she’s done when she needs it most!"
And Barbara's kind actions have been welcomed by Steph, who said: “The response from the community has just been so lovely and people are really feeling the effects of what happened. For a customer to feel so strongly that they’ve wanted to set up a GoFundMe, its so lovely.
"We wouldn’t expect people to put their hands in their pocket so its so kind. It’s such a lovely feeling to know the community are behind us.”
A spokesperson for Merseyside Police said: "We can confirm that officers are investigating a burglary at a Hoylake shop last week. On Friday 12 August, a report was made of entry being gained overnight to Quirky Café on Market Street and cash was reportedly stolen.
"Enquiries are ongoing and anyone with information or who witnessed any suspicious behaviour in the area on Thursday night/Friday morning can contact police @MerPolCC or anonymously through Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111 with reference 22000588355."
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