Help Rian replace her stolen catalytic converter...

Hello, my name is Rian McElrath. I am a college student at Western Washington University in Northwest Washington. I am away from my home and my friends for the first time. I am putting myself through college with the help of scholarships and grants, and some help from family. My car is my primary mode of transportation and was a graduation gift that many friends and family worked to give me. I love my local community and I have always felt safe here. Recently, my sense of safety was shattered when I went to get in my car and discovered someone had jacked up my car and used an electric saw to cut out and steal my catalytic converter. They sawed out about 5 feet of my car’s exhaust system, instead of cutting in the brackets that bolted the catalytic converter in place. If they had, then I could have fixed this myself and for much less money. The damage caused from their clumsy removal job has been quoted to about $2,600 including labor, parts, and new brakes that desperately need to be replaced. As a college student, paying my way through my quarters, I do not have the money to get this fixed. I know this is not a life and death emergency but it is the kind of emergency that could derail the work I have put into my first year of college, and the work of the people who have sacrificed to get me this far. I will need my car in order to work this summer to supplement the scholarships and grants I receive. I am reaching out to the wider community in hopes that I may find the help I need to fix my car. All I can do is ask, right? Thank you, so much, for taking the time to read this. I truly appreciate any help you can give.