WEST MIAMI, Fla. (WSVN) — A 7News viewer has stepped up to help a nurse at Jackson Memorial Hospital after a thief stole a present for her children from her porch while she was at work.
7News cameras captured the moment Edwin Quintero, the owner and president of The Pool Spa Billiard Store in Miami, surprised Debbie Lorenzo at her West Miami home, Thursday.
“We got a pool here for you,” said Quintero.
“Oh, my God. I can’t believe it,” said Lorenzo.
Lorenzo, a maternity ward nurse at JMH, was at work Wednesday when surveillance video captured a woman stealing the inflatable pool that had been delivered to her home, shortly after 1 p.m.
“My husband, actually, was the one who told me, ‘Hey, someone stole a package off of the front porch,'” said Lorenzo. “At the time, I was resuscitating a baby, so I didn’t look at my Apple Watch. I felt a notification, and I didn’t look at it.”
The nurse said she was shocked when she finally saw the surveillance video.
“When I saw it, I couldn’t believe it. She clearly just parked in front of my house and took my pool that I had gotten for my kids,” she said.
Quintero first saw Lorenzo’s story on Channel 7. He said he knew exactly what he wanted to do next.
“I was very angry, very, very angry,” he said. “I’ve seen this story over and over and over and over again, with all these porch pirates. They have their own name now, right?”
What makes this theft especially ludicrous, Quintero said, is the timing of it.
“For that to happen, especially with what’s going on in these times, we shouldn’t be worrying about that,” he said.
The inflatable pool that was stolen cost $200, but Lorenzo said this is not just about the pool.
“One woman, she reached out to me, and she’s like, ‘My daughter gets her Type 1 diabetes supplies to her house, so if someone would have stolen a package in front of her house, it’s something that could have really affected my daughter and her medical care,” she said.
“The lady stealing it off of her porch here, and [Lorenzo] is a first responder. She’s doing everything to help all these people with all the coronavirus that’s going on,” said Quintero. “She’s putting her life out as well. To have people come in and just, they see and follow a UPS truck, whatever is is, and stealing their product is crazy.”
“I’m very grateful for your kindness,” said Lorenzo.
The Lorenzos received an above-ground pool and installation for free.
Lorenzo said she has received many offers from viewers to donate money. She would like them to instead make a donation to the Jackson Health Foundation’s Miracle Fund to help provide much needed medical gear to the staff. For more information, click here.
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