A twin brother and sister were left mortified when the 'honesty box' left on their driveway charity stall was shamefully stolen.
But their sadness was soon replaced by joy when their mum shared the kids' plight on social media, prompting an incredible response from the public.
Six-year-old twins Charlie and Emily Allerston, from Bromborough, had set up the stall in front of their house, selling old toys on May 26, to raise money for Wirral Food Bank and for Emily to earn her Rainbows Helper badge.
But when Emily went outside to check the money box on Friday, she discovered it had vanished.
Mum Maggie said: "We weren't expecting much money off the stall. We put up a sign saying 'take for free or if you wish, donate in the charity box'.
"We were checking on the box - a pink piggy bank - every few hours, but then on Friday Emily ran back in and said it's gone. We knew it was a possibility, but you just try to trust people and that no one would take that off a little kiddies' stall, so we were quite shocked and saddened by it."
Mrs Allerston then put a post up on her Facebook page, telling friends and family about what had happened, adding a donate button to it incase anyone wanted to contribute to Wirral Food Bank.
But after the post was made public and shared, she was inundated with donations from well-wishers online and has also received knocks on her door from strangers wanting to give cash to Charlie and Emily towards their charity efforts.
Mrs Allerston added: "A guy came - we only know his name as Mick - and said "me and the lads got some money together" and gave us £70 in an envelope. I also need to say a special thank you Susan E Porter Funeral Directors, who have given us £100.
"People are so kind. In a way, thank you whoever stole our box, because look what it has created! It's unbelievable."
The family have now raised over £500 online for Wirral Food Bank and £300 in cash for Emily's Rainbows branch. The twins' dad, Andrew, is hoping that his employer will match the fundraising effort, adding: "It has restored our faith in humanity."
Anyone wishing to donte to the Allerston family's fundraising efforts can do so by clicking here.
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