Officials: suspected arsonist set fire to food at Lithia Springs ministry

LITHIA SPRINGS, Ga. - A community rallied together after vandals broke into a Lithia Springs church and destroyed thousands of meals that would have gone to students over spring break.

The vandals not only destroyed the meals but dosed them with chemicals before setting them on fire. About 2,000 meals were destroyed for no reason at all.

Wednesday morning, a Gift of Love ministry didn't know how they were going to replace all the meals by Friday before the students went on spring break.

Photographs shared by the ministry show aftermath of the fire.

According to a Gift of Love ministry, vandals broke in the Lithia Springs Church of God, spray painted graffiti on the wall, made a meal for themselves, and then doused the remaining food in a chemical before setting it on fire.

These meals provided nine days’ worth of food to 459 Douglas County students.

They also lost a special donation of boxed meals that would have gone to another 1,500 students in four other counties.

When people heard what happened they rushed in to help, bringing cartloads of food.

As of 5 p.m. Wednesday, all of the meals had been replaced, so the students will have meals over spring break.

A Gift of Love ministry is still taking in donations, saying they will put it towards their summer program where they send students home for the summer with meals.

The Douglas County Fire Department is handling the investigation.