Los Hermanos Familia is seeking Flock camera footage after a trailer packed with family fishing equipment disappeared from the nonprofit’s own storage property.
The open gates were Frank’s first warning.
He had arrived for his routine check of Los Hermanos Familia’s storage property when he noticed something was wrong. Then he saw the trailer was gone.
Inside it were about 200 fishing poles, tents, tables, benches and equipment the nonprofit had spent years assembling for its free “Vamos a Pescar, Let’s Go Fishing” event.
“He panicked. He was just shocked,” Christy Martinez-Garcia told Lubbock Lights.
The theft happened despite security lights, locks and a boot on the trailer, she said. The nonprofit owns the storage facility as well as the stolen trailer and equipment, Martinez-Garcia said.
“We’ve done everything to make sure that our property is secure,” she said.
Now the organization is working with Lubbock police, collecting neighboring businesses’ surveillance footage and seeking images from the city’s Flock camera system that could help identify whoever took it.
For Martinez-Garcia, the loss reaches beyond the estimated $18,000 to $20,000 needed to replace the trailer and its contents.
“I just felt like a punch in the gut,” she said.
“I just felt like a punch in the gut.”
Christy Martinez-Garcia
Locks and a trailer boot weren’t enough
Martinez-Garcia said whoever took the trailer cut through the security measures protecting it. She believes the person responsible knew how to defeat those protections.
“They cut everything,” she said, describing the person responsible as “a skilled thief.”
She did not identify the tools used.
Frank found the gates open when he arrived to check the building and equipment. Martinez-Garcia said the nonprofit keeps supplies at the property for several community projects and had been preparing for its veterans parade and Warm Hearts project.
The fishing equipment was stored in the trailer to make room for that work.
Military branch flags, sponsor flags and flagpoles were also inside the stolen trailer, she said. Toys collected for children were inside the building and were not taken.
Could Flock cameras provide a lead?
Frank has visited neighboring businesses to gather still images and video, Martinez-Garcia said.
The footage indicates the theft happened around 3:30 a.m., but the images reviewed so far have not provided a readable license plate, she said.
“We’re hoping that one of those Flock cameras might have caught something,” she said.
The organization is trying to determine whether cameras along the vehicle’s suspected route could provide another view. Martinez-Garcia said Frank also planned to check the surrounding area for cameras.
Whether relevant Flock images exist remains unresolved.
Martinez-Garcia believes the trailer itself was the target, rather than the equipment inside.
“I don’t think they knew what was inside,” she said.
A father’s request, a community tradition
The fishing event began with a deeply personal connection: Frank’s father’s last request to go fishing.
Martinez-Garcia said that request grew into a tradition serving thousands of people, with some former young participants now returning with children of their own.
“We have people that started as kids that are now bringing their kids,” she said.
The stolen equipment included a World War II tent used since the event began, along with lighting, hydration stations, hand-sanitizer stations and games for children.
Over time, volunteers moved beyond donated, used equipment and assembled dependable supplies they could maintain and use year after year.
“It took us 18 years, Benji, to collect all these tools to now have it all gone,” Martinez-Garcia said. “In a blink of an eye.”
Recovering those contents is her priority.
“Even if we just get the content, I don’t care about the trailer,” she said. “We can always replace the trailer, but the content, that’s the hard part.”
“It took us 18 years, Benji, to collect all these tools to now have it all gone.”
Christy Martinez-Garcia
Insurance, then a decision on help
The nonprofit is working with its insurance provider to determine whether the loss is covered. Its board will discuss the next steps, including whether to seek financial help.
If donations become necessary, Martinez-Garcia said money would allow the organization to purchase dependable equipment in the quantities needed for children and adults.
She said replacing supplies strategically matters because the organization wants to continue offering its events free to families.
“We try to do everything free, but we’re going to need help,” she said.
The theft has been emotional, Martinez-Garcia said, but faith and the organization’s volunteers are helping carry it forward.
“We’re not leaving any stone unturned because we can’t,” she said. “We just can’t.”
“We’ll get through it.”
