The South Side Presbyterian Church is asking for the community’s help after their signboard was destroyed in a hit-and-run incident.
When members arrived at the church on the morning of Sunday, November 11, they discovered that the signboard had been demolished and pushed into the front corner of the historic building.
“There were tire marks, broken light cover pieces, and other small vehicle parts on the sidewalk at the corner of South 20th and Sarah streets,” said Pastor Kathy Hamilton-Vargo. “It looks like a vehicle rammed into the building, demolishing the signboard in the process. It’s quite remarkable they managed to fit between a telephone pole and a fire hydrant without hitting either one.”
“Unfortunately, the driver did not leave a note or attempt to contact us to accept responsibility. We have a very high insurance deductible, which, frankly, we can’t afford to pay right now. We’d like to ask whoever did this to please contact us and take responsibility—either through their insurance or personal payment.”
Anyone in the neighborhood who saw the incident or has information about the driver is asked to call the church at 412-431-0118 to help with repairs.
“In the event we never find out who did this,” Pastor Hamilton-Vargo added, “if anyone has extra funds and would care to help us out with a donation to remove the old sign and install a new one, we would be truly grateful for your generosity.”
She also noted a second incident that occurred between Monday afternoon and Tuesday afternoon, November 12–13.
“We left the pieces on the sidewalk for two days in case our insurance company or a detective wanted to examine them,” she said. “Unfortunately, someone stole the top part of the signboard, which had the church’s name and a cross on it. We might have been able to reuse that.”
“We’d ask whoever took it to please return it—no questions asked.”
The South Side Presbyterian Church can be contacted at 412-431-0118. The mailing address is 1926 Sarah St., Pittsburgh, PA 15203 (corner of South 20th and Sarah streets).