photo by Hannah Reel

Vandals spray painted “Welcome to V-Town” on the sidewalk in front of the entrance to Trinity Episcopal Day School sometime between 11:30 p.m. Thursday night and 2:30 a.m. Friday morning. The vandals also broke several windows.

Vandals target Trinity Episcopal Day School

By Cassandra Mickens (Contact) | The Natchez Democrat

Published Saturday, September 26, 2009

NATCHEZ — The Natchez Police Department is investigating vandalism at Trinity Episcopal Day School.

Early Friday morning, head of school Jackie Ezell and board chairman Dr. Rod Givens were called to campus after police received a dispatch call at 2:19 a.m., Capt. Tom McGehee said. Police last patrolled the campus at 11:30 p.m. Thursday.

When the administrators arrived, they discovered 14 broken double pane windows in the main high school building, obscene graffiti on outside walls, sidewalks and Dumpsters, trash strewn across the grounds and toilet paper in the trees, according to a police report.

“I don’t know the cost of the damage yet,” Givens said. “The biggest cost is morale and the feeling of being violated from a senseless act.”

Givens and McGehee said some of the graffiti read “VHS” or “V-Lou,” as in Vidalia High School or Vidalia, La.

“There are names of individuals who have knowledge of what’s happening, and that information has been forwarded to the police,” Givens said.

Givens, Ezell and another board member took it upon themselves to clean the campus before students arrived.

“We were able to get it done by 6:30,” Givens said of the clean up. “It took us a good two-and-a-half, three hours.

“There’s stuff on the sidewalk that has to be pressure washed or sanded, but the building graffiti has been cleaned.”

Broken glass was swept up inside the affected classrooms, and open windows were covered with plastic and duct tape. Givens said the windows are the most severe and costly damage.

Givens expects to have the windows replaced by Monday.

Comments Disabled