School burglarized

Someone broke into buildings on the campus three times in the last six weeks and took a collection jar with $63 of student donations, a $50 from a field trip fund, two laptops, at least one desktop computer and a Palm Pilot.

Parents and community members immediately began fund-raising when they found out about the May 12 break in. The Lion's Club of Burlingame was holding a regular meeting on the same day and managed to raise $550. The school has also received an anonymous $1,000 donation to help buy new equipment, said Washington Principal Robert Clark.

The first break-in happened the first week of May at A Child's Way, an after-school program located on the Washington campus. At least one computer was taken from their office, Clark said.

Soon after, a similar burglary occurred at A Child's Way on the McKinley Elementary School campus, located at 701 Paloma Ave. On May 12, the thief returned to Washington and broke into the principal's office and stole a school laptop and Clark's personal laptop and Palm Pilot. Last Thursday, the thief again broke into A Child's Way building at Washington.

In each incident, the person gained entry by smashing a window, Clark said.

"All together we were really lucky, I cleaned [the collection jar] out a few days before," Clark said. "No one got hurt and everything taken can be replaced."

Almost everything. The thief broke a one-of-a-kind stain glass window crafted and donated by former school secretary Mary Ann Mealhow.

A Child's Way has installed a new security system and the Burlingame Elementary School District is looking into purchasing an updated alarm system. Meanwhile, school officials are asking neighbors and parents to be on the lookout for any suspicious activity.

Dana Yates can be reached by e-mail: dana@smdailyjournal.com or by phone: (650) 344-5200 ext. 106. What do you think of this story? Send a letter to the editor: letters@smdailyjournal.com.