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Police in Indiana saved the day this Christmas after a family’s gifts were stolen by a “true life Grinch” on Christmas Eve.
According to a now-viral Facebook post from the South Bend Police Department, police decided to do something special for a family that had their Christmas presents stolen the night before Christmas.
“They found out that the house had been burglarized, and in the process, the individual had taken all the gifts and even some food out of their refrigerator,” South Bend Police Department Patrolman Brian Meador told WNDU. “So, they really left this family with nothing much at all.”
Police called the offender a “true life Grinch.”
“Yep, cleaned them out. Not even the Who-hash or the roast beast (was left). It was all taken.”
Thanks to the South Bend FOP Lodge #36’s Santa’s Elficer’s Program, officers were able to obtain leftover gifts to bring to the devastated family.
In addition to several boxes of presents, officers also brought over food for the family in less than an hour after the burglary.
Video shared by the department showed the officers standing by the tree as the children jumped for joy when seeing the gifts.
The clip ended with the mother thanking the officers as they wished the family a “merry Christmas.”
“This is what serving our community is all about,” the post read.
“To see those little girl’s faces when they saw the presents under the tree and started playing with them, that’s why we do what we do,” Officer Meador said. “That’s the positive part, and that’s what keeps us going as officers. And so, I hope it’s a memory for them that’ll last a lifetime.”
The officers also received praise from the online community.
“This is one of the best things I’ve seen in a while. (It’s awful that they were robbed, at Christmas, no less),” one user wrote. “No one had to do anything extra, but they did. We need so much more of this in the world!”