GASPORT, N.Y. (WKBW) — For the love of animals.
"Well I was really sad to see some of the stray kitten suffering outside of my nana's," said 18-year-old Alex Murray, Eagle Scout. "And every time we'd lose a cat we'd probably adopt two more."
That love was the reason he decided to set up a brand new pet food pantry.
"We offer a bunch of food, a bunch of supplies such as bowls, treat," said Murray.
Murray said the pantry was the perfect idea for his Eagle Scout project.
"We're motivated to do the best we can in our community," said Murray. "That's what the purpose of our Eagle project is about."
It didn't take long for the community to learn about Murray's new project or hear about how things suddenly went wrong.
"I noticed it on their social media page," said Brian Wittcop, Store Manager at Clyde's Feed & Animal Center. "I saw the posting that showed the pantry coming in which I thought was a really great idea. Then within 24 hours I saw what had happened."
Murray said his pet pantry was ransacked and all the items inside were taken. It was then that the community jumped into action.
"I instantly started to try to formulate what we could possibly do to help," said Wittcop. "I reached out to our owner and he approved me going ahead getting some merchandise here from the store to try to fill the pantry back up."
"The community really rekindled joy with helping out restocking everything and contributing to it more," said Murray. "Just bringing more good than bad."
While items may have been taken, Wittcop said helping Murray was a no-brainer. Wittcop said he'd do anything to not only restore what was stolen but restore Murray's passion for helping animals too.
"I've been in the animal industry for 30 years now," said Wittcop. "I kind of knew that feeling when you put so much effort into something and then it kind of goes awry. Being that he's a little bit younger than I was when I experienced it, I wanted to do whatever I could do to possibly prevent that from having the same experience for him."
"I can not thank them enough for what they have done," said Murray. "It makes me happy to see the way that things have turned out."
The pet pantry is open Monday through Friday but new security measures have been put in place to keep items safe. There is a new padlock and sign out sheet at the location to ensure the longevity of the project.
