LAYTON, Utah — The owners of a Layton food stuff truck say they are confused and crammed with gratitude since of how the neighborhood stepped in soon after their truck was vandalized with racist, hateful messages.
A Layton Town representative reported that Layton Metropolis Police are now investigating the vandalism.
Pictures posted to Fb clearly show the graffiti-included Yum Yum Meals Truck after the incident around the weekend.
Environment Famous Yum Yum Foods Truck / Facebook
Ben Pierce and his 21-calendar year previous son, Brevin, operate the foods truck with each other. They are passionate about sharing Filipino foodstuff with the group, specially mainly because Pierce explained there aren’t lots of Filipino dining establishments in Utah.
“We adore the new persons that by no means, at any time tasted it just before,” Pierce explained. He described loving to view buyers walk absent and take their initial bite, then change back again about to convey to them how mouth watering it is.
In addition to sharing foods, Pierce enjoys to share what his family members is all about to the community.
“They get to see how really hard doing the job we are, how dedicated we are to our household — just like American values,” he said.
When Pierce arrived out to work on the meals truck Sunday in Layton, he found one particular overall aspect of the black truck included in white spray paint.
“I was like, ‘Are you kidding me?'” He recounted. “At initial… I assumed it was just, you know, like scribbles.”
On searching closer, Pierce could see that the white scribbles were in fact racist, vulgar text. In addition to the hateful words and phrases, somebody wrote, “Depart our state.”
That is what harm Pierce the most to browse.
“This is property,” Pierce claimed, tearing up as he spoke. “This has been property for… I have been in this article lengthier. My kids are born right here. So that’s the challenging part, yeah.”
Even more durable was recognizing that this was not the first time Yum Yum Foods Truck has been specific.
Last yr, as Ben and Brevin were attempting to get Yum Yum Food stuff Truck off the floor, Pierce stated their generator was stolen.
They replaced it with a greater generator. Two days afterwards, Pierce mentioned, that new generator was also stolen.
“And then they broke into it, broke the locks, broke the back doorway handles,” Pierce stated of a 3rd incident. “They minimize the lock on that facet, they got in and took our cooking devices. This is all prior to we even opened up.”
Neighbors like Dustin Robinson saw the most latest vandalism and preferred to do one thing to aid.
“It turned into a great deal of disappointment and just sorrow for them, knowing that they’d had a number of split-ins, burglaries,” he claimed.
Robinson and another man or woman arranged a GoFundMe marketing campaign, and several businesses have available their products and services for no cost — together with a new logo for the truck and a complete wrap.
“I feel the greatest element is just understanding that they’re liked, just recognizing that the community’s rallied all over them,” Robinson mentioned.
Pierce was speechless at the assist and known as individuals who achieved out to him “angels.”
“Unbelievable, person. It’s just so… we’re blessed,” he said. “I can not even place terms to it.”
Pierce has painted the truck white on the side to include up the hateful messages. He designs to get it back up and operating and will be at the Philippine Independence Working day celebration this Saturday.
The loved ones is inquiring individuals to come support the Filipino group Saturday at the celebration, which will be held at Jordan Park in Salt Lake Town (1060 S. 900 West) from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.
