FUNDRAISERS say they are overwhelmed with the "phenomenal" effort to recoup £6,000 stolen from a cancer support centre.
Readers rallied round when they heard a safe containing the money had been stolen from Maggie's just hours after the charity's annual summer fair on Sunday.
Well-wishers stepped forward to donate after the Post appealed for help on our website, bringing the total so far to more than £5,600 with gift aid.
Fundraising manager Laura Grant said a huge thank you to everyone who donated.
She said: "We are overwhelmed by the support in the community. It goes towards restoring faith in human nature at an awful time. "On Monday we struggled to make sense of it but the response has been phenomenal."
Thieves broke into the distinctive green building, in the grounds of Nottingham City Hospital, on Sunday at around 10.45pm. Along with the safe they grabbed the centre's computers.
As well as donations, including £3,000 from a former Nottinghamshire resident and Post reader in Japan, Maggie's has been flooded with offers of help to repair the damage to the property and messages of support, both on its own Facebook page and the Post's.
Cancer patient Jenny Rhodes, who ran a stall at the summer fair, said: "We will bounce back from this. Nothing is going to spoil the love and happiness Maggie's gives to us."
The 48 year old from Gedling, who has incurable breast cancer, was in tears at the start of the week but today she was overjoyed by the response to the appeal.
"I am astounded. Out of bad comes good," she said.
"There are some genuinely good people in Nottingham.... and Japan."
Reader Joan Simpson, 90, from Bilborough, rang the Post to condemn the culprits. "I had a breast off when I was 83 and three weeks ago I found out that the cancer has come back.
"When I heard the news about the break-in I was so disgusted with these people. It has really upset me.
"My daughter Yvonne has made a donation today. I feel much better knowing that more than £5,000 has been raised."
As previously reported by the Post, reader Doug Morton, who teaches in Japan, donated £3,000 to the appeal after seeing the story online. The 35-year- old, originally from Wysall, was disgusted by the theft.
He said: "I still can't understand why someone would steal from Maggie's and the community like this. Let's hope they get caught quickly."
The stolen safe also contained registration forms and payment for the charity's forthcoming 5k Moonlight Walk in Mapperley Park on July 18.
Anyone who registered for the event over the last week is asked to contact Laura on 07970 043949.
Police have launched an investigation into the break-in.
To donate to the Maggie's appeal, visit the website www.justgiving.com/Laura-Grant12
