Thieves may have stolen the contents of their community center, but they can't destroy the spirit of the Blackmon Road community, its members say.

A Place for Hope, a community resource center for residents of Blackmon Road, was burglarized sometime between late Friday and early Saturday. Thieves took a television, VCR, computer equipment, fax and even the phone system, said founder Donna McLaughlin.

McLaughlin said Sunday she was looking on the bright side of things, adding perhaps the burglary will help create something better.

"You just have to look for the blessing in it," McLaughlin said. "It could have been worse - I could have been in there."

A Place for Hope is located off S.C. 72, just outside Rock Hill city limits. The center, which operates out of a 2,100-square-foot mobile office unit on Archer Drive, opened in November 2002, McLaughlin said, to help an impoverished area of the local community.

McLaughlin discovered the break-in when she went to the center early Saturday to work, she said.

"I got to the front door, put the key in and saw it was unlocked," McLaughlin said. "It (the center) was trashed pretty badly."

Police were called to the center, McLaughlin said, and discovered the thief or thieves had entered through a rear window.

McLaughlin said the center needs the community's assistance to continue its mission, particularly after Saturday's burglary.

"We're already struggling to keep the doors open for about two or three more months and now this," McLaughlin said. "We need the community's help."

Among services offered at A Place for Hope are tutoring for children, computer training, assistance filling out government and employment applications and medical assistance. Former resident Lisa Wylie said the center has meant a lot to the Blackmon Road Community, which used to be known as "Trash Pile Road."

"If it wasn't for the 'trash pile,' I wouldn't be here," Wylie said. "This is my family. When I had no food, they fed me. I always come back."

Wylie, 35, was a resident of the Blackmon Road community for three years; she also volunteered at A Place for Hope. Officials at the center supported her as she went through the court system to regain custody of her children after a six-year separation, she said.

Wylie now is drug and alcohol free. She often returns to her former neighborhood to provide transportation and other help to whoever needs it.

"They (center officials) helped me and gave me the push I needed to get my life together," Wylie said. "I had it in me to do better, but they showed me they cared."

Resident Danny Walker said the center has helped change the neighborhood and individual lives. The community of about 25 residents still has some drug problems to contend with, Walker said. There is high unemployment among many of the residents, but Walker hopes someday to see better housing and job opportunities.

"With faith, prayers and financial resources from local churches and government, changes are coming to this community," Walker said.

A Place for Hope is open 4 to 8 p.m. Tuesdays and Thursdays, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday and other times as needed, McLaughlin said. The center will open at 11 a.m. Tuesday, McLaughlin said. Although there is no equipment, they will continue to operate the food pantry.

Contact Denyse Clark at 329-4069 or dclark@heraldonline.com.

A Place for Hope, a community resource center for residents of Blackmon Road, was burglarized sometime between late Friday and early Saturday. Thieves took a television, VCR, computer equipment, fax and even the phone system, said founder Donna McLaughlin.

Among services offered at A Place for Hope are tutoring for children, computer training, assistance filling out government and employment applications and medical assistance. Former resident Lisa Wylie said the center has meant a lot to the Blackmon Road Community, which used to be known as "Trash Pile Road."

A Place for Hope is open 4 to 8 p.m. Tuesdays and Thursdays, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday and other times as needed, McLaughlin said. The center will open at 11 a.m. Tuesday, McLaughlin said. Although there is no equipment, they will continue to operate the food pantry.