The holidays can bring out the best and worst in people, something one local single mother had to learn the hard way.

One Bay St. Louis woman had her holiday dreams crushed after she posted a picture to Facebook showing off the Christmas toys she got for her two-year-old daughter. The day after her post, someone broke into Caroline Johnson’s home and stole most of the toys. “It just crushed me and then some, it completely devastated me. It broke my heart for this little girl. I worked my tail off to get all of the presents for her and make her Christmas extra special this year.”

- Advertisement -

Caroline Johnson is a single mother of one. She works full time as a waitress in Bay St. Louis and has been slowly buying her daughter Christmas gifts since the summer. “It has put a damper on our Christmas, but we will not let it ruin it. There is a Grinch out there, but we are going to make the best of it and move forward. She is going to be excited for what she does have.”

Caroline believes it was someone she knew who stole the toys because nothing else was stolen from her home. She hopes other parents can learn a valuable lesson to not overshare on Facebook. “Definitely don’t show your presents off, just keep it to yourself, hide your boxes, hide everything because they are out there and they will come in and take your stuff.”

This is something Major Chris De Back with the Biloxi Police Department feels strongly about. He also wants to remind people not to post about their travel plans online. “If you are going out of town, it’s the same thing, you don’t want to post that. It is great to let everyone know where you are at or what you are doing but make a phone call or send a text. You put it on social media and people will know that the home is available to break into.”

If you would like to donate a toy to help make the Johnson’s Christmas a little brighter you can reach out to her online at Facebook.com/CarolineJohnson89.