Firms do their best to help out

Who said community spirit was dead?

Last month, we reported how a £33,000 minibus belonging to a Wearside scout group was damaged by mindless yobs.

Castletown Scouts’ vehicle was parked at the group’s base in Swallow Dene behind an eight-feet-high fence protecting it.

But the yobs hurled bricks on to the minibus, damaging its windows.

Events had to be cancelled because of the attack, and scout leaders were left concerned about how much repairs would increase the group’s insurance premiums.

However, today we report that the tale of woe has a happy ending.

Bosses at repair shop Car and Bike Magic, of Wear Street, near the Queen Alexandra Bridge, saw the group’s plight and stepped in to carry out work on the minibus.

Graeme Moan, of the business, has done all of the work free of charge.

The big-hearted boss came to the rescue after reading about the youngsters’ plight.

Mr Moan said: “I talked about it with my wife and we decided we’d bring it in and sort the repairs. They would have had to cancel a lot of the trips they had booked, and why should kids like that suffer all because of one person doing that?”

“We are over the moon with the repairs which Graeme has done,” said-Group Scout leader Alan Palmer.

“He’s even done things we didn’t ask to be repaired like a few little scratches on the body.”

And to top it all off, another firm – Electrical Centre, in Pallion – has also donated CCTV, which will be put up at the scouts’ base to deter vandals in future.

Well done to the community-spirited businesses who have stepped in to do their best to help out the scout group.