Donations to NJ church charity stolen from FedEx drop box

✝️ Donations to a Diocese of Paterson appeal were left in a FedEx drop box

✝️ The tracking codes were never activated

✝️ 500 of the 1,700 envelopes may have contained cash, checks or credit card info

About 1,700 donations to the annual Paterson Diocesan Ministries Appeal have gone missing from after being left in a FedEx drop box.

Three packages of donations were placed in the box for shipping to a third party that processes and records donations on Oct. 30 and 31, according to a letter from the Paterson Diocesan Center.  The packages never arrived at their destination and the tracking numbers were never entered in FedEx system

The center estimates that about 500 of the 1,700 donation envelopes may have contained cash, checks or credit card information.  The donations were left at their office on Valley Road in Clifton between Oct. 28 and 31.

Police have been notified and the center says foul play has not been ruled out.

It was the first day of this year's appeal, which has the theme “United in Faith, Hope and Love.” Donations support seminaries, Catholic schools in cities, healthcare and retirement for priests, and Catholic Charities ministries.

Calling the giving to a charity a "joyful experience," the center is concerned that word of a theft could make potential donors hesitant.

"This has the unintended effect of impacting funding to the important and vital ministries in the diocese," the center wrote.

The diocese has already changed its procedure to require all packages to be brought to a FedEx store where it is handed to a clerk and scanned.

The Diocese of Paterson comprises Roman Catholic parishes in Morris, Passaic and Sussex counties.

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