A FIRM of German organ builders has thanked the people of Maldon for raising money to repair their vandalised van.

The specialist craftsmen had been in the town to carry out the installation of the beautiful new organ at St Mary's Church in Church Street when their van was targeted by hateful thugs – twice.

The vehicle was deeply keyed in one incident close to Hythe Quay with a hateful note left stating: "invaders will be repelled" and then, just days later on Thursday, 8 October, it was smothered in eggs and flour in St Giles Crescent as the men ate their dinner in the nearby Queen Victoria pub in Spital Road.

Colin Baldy, musical director at St Mary's Church, expressed his disgust at the attacks at the time and a friend and colleague, James Eley, decided to set up a Go Fund page with an initial target of £500.

However, the final amount collected reached £1,000 and was enough to put all the damage right.

Now the company, Thomas Hey, have written a letter to Mr Baldy, thanking the community.

The letter reads:

"Dear Friends,

"We would like to thank you for all your warm-hearted gestures of friendship and support for us following the unpleasant incidents of vandalism to our van.

"We were overwhelmed by your generosity in raising funds for the necessary repairs.

"It is wonderful to know that the individual who caused the damage does not represent the people of Maldon, and we are delighted that our impression of Maldon as a welcoming and friendly place has been restored.

"We hope that our work in St Mary's church is a worthy gift to the town and are sure that local residents are going to be suitably impressed and proud of it."