Donation Jar Stolen From Collegeville Rita's

A jar containing an estimated $150 in donations to support educational programs for children with autism was stolen from the Rita's Water Ice in Collegeville on April 21, the store's owner said Saturday.

Bev McNutt, who owns the Collegeville Rita's and three other Rita's locations in the area, believes the large plastic jar for the store's annual "Ice for Autism" charity drive was stolen from the external counter of the store after 5:00 p.m. on Saturday, when customer activity had slowed.

"I think it happened at night when things slowed down. Maybe [the employees] looked away for a second," McNutt said.

McNutt said the jar was taken inside and, with the exception of coins, emptied at the end of each day. She estimates the jar was about one-third full with several pounds of coins at the time of the theft.

"The wind didn't blow it away," McNutt said.

McNutt said she did not report the theft to Collegeville Police because she could not say with certainty how much money was in the jar. Her estimate of $150 is based on previous daily collection amounts and the time of day at which the theft is believed to have taken place.

Collegeville Police confirmed by telephone Friday that they did not receive a report of the theft.

McNutt hopes someone in the community may know the person who was responsible for the theft and come forward.

"It's a nice town and you don't want to believe things like this happen around here, but they do," McNutt said.