FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
March 25, 2021
Goodwill employee finds valuables accidentally left in donated items
Edinburg, TX – Yaquelin Treviño, a Goodwill employee in Edinburg, was processing donations on March 15th when she discovered nearly $2,000 in cash, jewelry, and personal IDs hidden in a donation.
“It was a total of six envelopes with various amounts of cash. There were also plastic bags of gold and silver jewelry and IDs, “said Treviño.
Treviño knew it had to be donated by mistake and took the cash, jewelry and IDs to her manager. Together they counted the money, which totaled nearly $2,000. The search for the donor began. Among the found items was a business card for a local senior living center. Goodwill staff contacted the senior living center who in turn contacted the donor. Two days later, the donor, Gilberto DeLaRosa, contacted Goodwill.
DeLaRosa said, “My mother had recently passed away. As we were cleaning out her apartment, there were a few bags and boxes we didn’t go through. We just dropped it off at Goodwill on McColl in Edinburg.”
DeLaRosa is extremely grateful to Goodwill and especially Treviño for making the effort to return the items. “The sentimental value is priceless and I’m thankful to Goodwill for getting these items back to me and my family, “said DeLaRosa.
“Goodwill sees over 1,000 donors every day. When an item is donated by mistake, it is highly unlikely that the donated item will be found. It is usually processed and sold in our stores within 24-48 hours. In this case, it’s serendipitous to find and return the valuables to its owner,” Goodwill officials said.
The valuables will be returned to DeLaRosa on Friday at 1:30 p.m. at the Goodwill store, located at 1561 S. McColl Rd in Edinburg, TX.
About Goodwill Industries of South Texas, Inc.
Goodwill’s mission is to create life-changing opportunities for people with disabilities and other barriers to employment. Goodwill serves the most fragile populations in our communities including people with disabilities, veterans, ex-offenders, and those who are chronically unemployed by connecting them to jobs. The mission is accomplished by putting people to work in the community or within Goodwill.
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