Weymouth Food Pantry box truck targeted in string of catalytic converter thefts

WEYMOUTH  – The Weymouth Food Pantry is scrambling to continue running its mobile "pop up" pantry after the catalytic converter was stolen from the pantry's box truck.

Pamela Denholm, executive director of the Weymouth Food Pantry, said the 18-foot truck was parked outside the Weymouth Food Pantry warehouse in Rockland when the converter was stolen.

An increase in the value of precious metals has made the car parts the target of thieves looking to strip them of rhodium, palladium and platinum, experts say. The catalytic converter was also stolen from the truck of Interfaith Social Services, a nonprofit that runs a Quincy-based food pantry, and from several trucks owned by Penske in Braintree.

Denholm said the Weymouth truck is used almost daily for food pick-up and delivery, and is critical to the operation of the pantry’s mobile distribution model, as well as food rescue efforts with local grocery stores.

Unlike many brick and mortar pantries on the South Shore, Weymouth Food Pantry provides groceries to those in need through a series of weekly pop-up pantries.

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“We discovered that transportation was the biggest barrier to access for families, so this pop-up model has enabled us to bring food directly into the community where it is needed,” Denholm said.

The truck is essential to delivering those services, which help between 250 and 400 families each week.

“Without the catalytic converter, we can’t drive the truck. A replacement is going to cost $11,000, and the part is on back order with no estimated delivery date,” Denholm said.

A catalytic converter is an exhaust emission control device that converts toxic gases and pollutants from an internal combustion engine into less-toxic pollutants.

The theft comes as the pantry gears up for its busy season, when the weather starts to cool and heating costs rise, back to school expenses come into play and the holidays start to loom.

Annmarie Coyle, pop-up pantry director, said this summer was one of the busiest for the pantry in its 38-year history due to increased grocery and gas prices.

On top of that, Labor Day weekend is a popular move-in time, and no truck rentals were available to keep the pantry on the road.

Long term, there are no box trucks with a ramp, or a lift gate available for rent in the New England Area.

“We are looking for solutions,” Denholm said. “We are calling scrap yards, and truck rental agencies. Without a truck, we won’t be able to run the pantry.”

This article originally appeared on The Patriot Ledger: Catalytic converter stolen from Weymouth Food Pantry's box truck