RESEDA : Lokrantz to Replace Tots’ Stolen Toys

Thanks to donations from people moved by its plight, a Reseda special education school will be able to replace a batch of toys stolen several weeks ago, a school official said Tuesday.

According to Vicki Ortega, office manager for the Lokrantz Special Education Center, donations to the school have nearly reached the $2,500 needed to replace the items.

Faculty members discovered the theft March 20, Ortega said. Stolen were brand-new tricycles, wagons and rocking horses, although many were customized for the needs of the school’s mentally and physically disabled students, she added.

The toys were purchased for Lokrantz’s preschoolers, who were too young to comprehend the crime, Ortega said, but the burglary was especially hard on their parents.

“They were upset that the toys had been stolen and that their kids had nothing to ride on,” she said.

Rich Wyler, a spokesman for First Interstate Bank, which pledged $500 to the school, said it decided to help after an employee whose son attends another special education program learned of the theft.

“We were really happy to be able to provide the last big donation that they needed to hit the $2,500 mark,” he said.

In December, thieves made off with about $20,000 worth of gifts and equipment from the Dubnoff Center for Child Development and Educational Therapy in North Hollywood. Although that crime brought a quick flood of donations to replace the stolen items, Ortega said she was still overwhelmed.

“I was pleasantly surprised,” she said. “I was shocked.”