The Lewisham community is pulling together to help a café owner who has endured a brutal year.
Saima Thompson, 29, learned of her stage four lung cancer in April and her family business, Masala Wala Café, has been targeted by "opportunistic thugs" twice in just a few months.
She told News Shopper after the latest break-in on Brockley Cross (September 8) how it was the last thing she needed.
READ MORE - Masala Wala Café in Brockley broken into for second time this year
The safety glass was battered and Saima described the impact on her business as heartbreaking.
However, a blogger for Crofton & Honor Oak Park, Jane Martin, has started a fundraiser for a shutter to protect Masala Wala from future trouble.
A statement on the GoFundMe read: “The News Shopper article gave local resident Jane Martin, a loyal customer of Masala Wala, the idea of starting a fundraiser as a show of support for the restaurant.
“Jane teamed up with another local resident, Nicola Johnson, to launch this GoFundMe campaign - the aspiration behind the campaign is to see if we can show Masala Wala some big community love by giving them a special Christmas present from the community to round off their awful year on a more positive note.”
The first break-in was in January where the front doors were smashed.
READ MORE - Cafe window smashed by bin as another Brockley business is hit by vandals
After the second incident, Saima said the Brockley customers had kept her going throughout a difficult period.
You can donate to the fundraiser here - https://www.gofundme.com/help-masala-wala-to-buy-shutters
Saima documents her passion for food and her battle with cancer on her popular blog Curry and Cancer.
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