A Portland church that was damaged in yet another night of riots and turmoil Sunday says the cost of repairs will likely detract from their ability to feed the homeless, marking yet another unspoken casualty of the destructive protests that have been allowed to rage across largely Democrat-controlled cities for the better part of a year.
Rioters and looters reportedly smashed in the windows of First Christ Church during the chaos, which congregation members later covered with plywood.
Pastor Cynthia McBride said the cost of repairing the damage is significant because of the tumultuous year the church has already endured, including having been damaged previously during last year’s riots and having suffered under COVID closures.
Fox News reports that the church’s homeless ministry is popular in the community, where more than 1,000 meals for the homeless are given out weekly, according to a police report assessing the damage.
Apparently rioters didn’t get the memo that the church might need to have their windows in tact to keep feeding the city’s most vulnerable – either that or they just didn’t care.
Other buildings, including major retailers and small stores as well as the Oregon Historical Society, were badly damaged, looted or torched by hundreds of rioters. A white man who hasn’t yet been identified was also shot to death by protesters in Southeast Portland in an incident that’s still being investigated.