Vandalism of Anne Arundel County park shed with youth equipment described as "heartbreaking"

A storage shed containing youth athletic equipment was broken into and vandalized at Bell Branch Park in Anne Arundel County last weekend, causing an estimated $10,000 of damage, the Crofton Athletic Council said.

The vandals left spray-painted profanity on the doors, ruined and destroyed children's uniforms, and smashed holes in nearly every wall.

"It's heartbreaking," said Kirsten Fass, a lacrosse coach and Crofton Athletic Council board member. "It just hurts the kids in the community."

Council officials said the vandalism happened sometime on Saturday, leaving the area in a state of disarray.

"We're a nonprofit, so everything that needs to be replaced, we'll probably have to fundraise," Fass said. "It's just taking away from the kids in our community."

This vandalism at the park was the third in the past four months, according to the council. 

Vandals also broke into the electrical boxes and stole the copper wires, leaving the baseball field lights out of order.

"Now that this is reoccurring, it's problematic and this is the most destructive that we've seen, so it hit us pretty hard," said Brian Szydlik, a baseball coach and CAC board member.

Anyone with information on the vandalism should contact  Anne Arundel County police.  

Security efforts

Board members are working with officials, including Delegate Stuart Schmidt, on ways to prevent vandalism, which could include installing cameras.

"Maybe some more lighting there, we talked to the county about maybe more security at the gate at certain times," Delegate Schmidt said.

"Our community is very strong"

In the meantime, coaches say they are grateful for the community's support, which includes offering to help with repairs for free.

"Our community is very strong, always willing to help, and I think whoever did this probably thought they were hurting us, but they actually brought us together," Fass said.

Szydlik said he is focused on forgiving the suspects and not harping on the negatives.

"You also think about the individual, or people that did it, and think, let's pray for them," he said.