Thieves stole $8,000 of P.E. equipment from Rancho Milpitas Middle School last week, just as the school was preparing to welcome back students for the fall semester.
Principal Casey McMurray described the theft as disappointing and disheartening to KGO. The equipment was kept in an unmarked storage container. "There were bows, arrows, softballs. I mean, the whole thing. This is kind of bare-bones," said McMurray.
The storage container is kept on-campus, though its contents would not be known to someone unfamiliar.
McMurray said the thieves also made off with 21 brand new softball gloves, never used. They also rifled through the archery equipment, selecting only the quality ones, leaving others behind.
"It had to be probably someone who knew what was in there and decided, unfortunately, to do something that would have a negative impact on our P.E. program," said McMurray.
McMurray said the P.E. program serves the 700 students of Rancho Milpitas. The kids will soon be returning to full-time, in-person classes for the first time since March 2020, and having in-person P.E. as well.
"I do know that the insurance does not cover theft or vandalism of this sort," McMurray said. "So we are not able to access those funds to recover these materials."
"It's pretty low to steal from kids," he added. "And that's basically what happened here."
McMurray is hoping the community might assist with funding for new gear, ahead of the fast approaching school year.
The school has launched a GoFundMe page to help recoup the costs. The campaign asks for $6,000, but after further inspection, the loss is closer to $8,000, said McMurray.
Rancho Milpitas Middle School students return to campus on Aug. 12.
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