Stolen van parked outside Ronald McDonald house leaves family trying to pick up the pieces

By Grace Smith

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    KANSAS CITY, Missouri (KCTV) — A stolen van parked behind a Ronald McDonald house has left one family desperately trying to pick up the pieces.

KCPD said they found the van Monday afternoon, but it was completely trashed. It’s an ongoing investigation, and no one has been arrested.

Padro Arellano and his family have been staying at a Ronald McDonald house for the past few days.

Arellano’s son has DiGeorge Syndrome. So, every month, the family makes the trip to Children’s Mercy from Liberal, KS.

Arellano said they were about to head out on Saturday morning when they noticed something was missing.

“So, I had prepacked a bunch of his stuff, his oxygen tanks and his nebulizer and my clothes, we had packed it in the van the night before,” Arellano said. “When I went to pack everything else Saturday morning, it was already gone.”

Their van, full of their son’s medical equipment, was nowhere to be found. “Of all places, you know, I thought this would be the last place people would be targeting,” Arellano said.

Arellano then filed a police report and got a rental car for the ride home. “Someone was defiantly targeting our van,” Arellano said. “Just the way they pulled up, they knew it was there and they just parked right beside it. A few seconds later a passenger jumped out, opened the door, and it was gone.”

While the damage is extensive, Arellano said he’s choosing to remain positive.

“We’ve been through so much as a family, and just with my son, he’s alive, he’s breathing, he was my main concern,” Arellano said. “Through faith, we were able to overcome a lot of these obstacles that life has hit us with.”

Tammi Greenburg, CEO of Ronald McDonald House Charities of Kansas City, said they’re doing everything they can to help the Arellano family.

“The worst thing ever has happened to families already at Ronald McDonald house, and then when something extra difficult happens like this, it’s not fair,” Greenburg said.

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