News
25 January, 2025
Community spirit shines for scooter
The Wamuran community has rallied behind a young apprentice at the local butcher, raising enough funds to buy him a new electric scooter and helmet, after his previous one was stolen from behind his workplace.
On Wednesday, January 15, 14-year-old Onyx had his electric scooter and helmet stolen from behind Wamuran Country Meats while on shift. The scooter was a Christmas gift from his father to help Onyx get to work.
Following social media posts, the Wamuran and surrounding community began offering donations to help Onyx buy a replacement scooter, with the shop setting up a donation box in-store. Within only three days, enough money was raised to buy a new scooter, valued at roughly $1,000, and a new helmet. Onyx said the community support felt “really good,” as he didn’t expect this kind of outcome.
“It felt great seeing that people want to help and donate money,” he said.
Wamuran Country Meats manager, Will, said the support shown by the community, from day one, was “overwhelming,” with one couple even lending Onyx a scooter until he got a replacement.
“It’s really disappointing it happened, because we don’t expect something like that here, but at the same time, it’s amazing to see how good our community is,” he said. “I’ve been working here for nearly 10 years and have never seen something like this before. I can’t even recall a time someone’s stolen anything, much less a kid’s prized possession. Onyx is a very good worker and works hard, so it was rough seeing this happen.”
Onyx’s scooter was parked away from its usual spot when it got stolen, due to staff needing to access the space. The new scooter will now be kept in a locked office.
Having kept their faithful customers and the public in the loop during the week, Wamuran Country Meats released security images of the person who stole the scooter and extensively thanked the community, and Australia, for the support.
“From the countless shares to the overwhelming generosity, this story has gone far beyond Wamuran - it’s reached across Australia, and the kindness shown has left us all speechless,” they wrote, after sharing the news that Onyx was able to buy a new scooter with GPS tracking and lock, and new helmet, thanks to donations.
“Onyx is deeply grateful for every single person who contributed, shared, and sent kind words his way. Your support means the world to him and all of us here at Wamuran Country Meats. This incredible act of community spirit is something we’ll never forget.”
Wamuran Country Meats has now stopped taking donations and the incident has been reported to police. A Queensland Police Service (QPS) spokesperson told The Sentinel that the e-scooter has been located, undamaged, in Wamuran on Sunday, January 19, with investigations into the perpetrator continuing.
Onyx and his father will be donating the found scooter to a family in need, with Wamuran Country Meats planning to host a community event in the future to thank the community for their support.
