"I want to help the vandals who damaged my bus" which is for struggling families and the homeless
The Paignton man who’s trying to help feed Torbay’s homeless and support struggling families says he hopes to meet whoever vandalised his bus as 'they are the sort of people I'm trying to help'.
Last updated 29th Oct 2020
Within days of it being delivered last week, Mike Trower’s bus suffered £2,500 worth of vandalism with five windows smashed and internal damage.
The single dad has since crowdfunded to pay for the repairs, and says work to convert the bus will now continue.
He's best known locally for his Cooking With Cody online show and community interest company - which invests any profits back into the community .
The cooking show started two years ago and has followed Mike and his son Cody learning to cook together.
Mike Hopes, once finished, the bus will offer cooking lessons and be a place where youngsters can try making food-related YouTube videos.
Since lockdown Mike has cooked weekly meals for the homeless, to date giving out over 1,500.
He currently offers online children's cooking classes, where he sends out ingredients to people's homes before the zoom sessions start.
An online crowdfunding appeal to transform the bus, which could be on the road by Easter, has so far attracted £10,500 and the link can be found here
Mike said: "Once the bus is finished the community groups that we're going to help are going to be the homeless, elderly in care homes, elderly people who aren't in care homes as well who need to get together with communities.
"Children, families in poverty and just general people who need that support network as well."
When asked how he feels about whoever damaged his bus he said: "I just want to help them."
Work to convert the bus will see it meet fire safety standards, vehicle safety standards, food safety standards and child safeguarding criteria.
Mike added: "When the project is finished the lower level of the bus is going to be a big kitchen area.
"The back of the bus is going to be a YouTube filming area where the ovens and stuff are going to be so children can either film their own YouTube show or they can just cook and I can tell them how to do it.
"The seating upstairs is where the families are going to be, or the friends.
"There's going to be a bathroom at the top as well with a changing area for babies and then the back of the bus is going to be a tiny cheche area as well for kids."
For more about Mike's work click here