Julie and Peng “Chris” Tou, owners of Christy’s Donuts in Point Loma, are recovering from having their home burglarized recently and their savings stolen from their safe while they were both away.

The Tou’s eldest daughter, Kim Bott, started a GoFundMe after the tragedy to help her parents out. But she said that effort has been discontinued.

“I closed it (GoFundMe) because they felt uncomfortable taking the money,” Bott said adding her parents instead told her, “We’ll work at the shop and want people to buy donuts instead. They’re hard-working and just want people to come and support them.”

As the eldest child of Julie and Pheng Tou, known as Chris by his customers, Bott said: “I watched my parents work tirelessly my entire life. They separately immigrated to America from Cambodia in 1982. They had both lived through a nightmare during the Khmer Rouge civil war and Cambodian genocide as children and early teens.”

Bott noted her parents met in high school and started dating in college. “My father had an uncle who was in the donut business and that’s where he started learning how to make donuts,” she said. “My parents married and opened their business, Christy’s Donuts, at 3710 Voltaire St. in 1989. It wasn’t an easy start. But now, 35 years later, they are still there with a dedicated customer base.”

Bott said the police investigation into her parent’s burglary is ongoing. She said the home invasion occurred sometime between 4 and 6 p.m. on a Wednesday. She added the timing was odd for several reasons.

“It was in the middle of the day, in the middle of the week when people are getting home from work and usually people are around,” she noted adding, “Somebody went in and took their safe, which was more for keeping documents and other valuables from fire, and was not something they ever really thought about.”

Concerning what her parents might have done differently to protect themselves, Bott pointed out they “didn’t take photos” of valuables in their safe, which could have helped in recovering them. “It might also have helped if they had security cameras planted,” she said adding, “It’s important to make sure things are locked.”

Noted Bott: “My parents are the hardest-working people I know. They stay open every day of the week and every holiday. Their business and their customers always come first. Having everything taken from them again and having to start all over with nothing is heartbreaking.”

The outpouring of sympathy from the Peninsula community for the Tous has been heartwarming, noted their daughter. “A lot of people have reached out and said this has happened to them, someone’s either robbed their home or stolen their car,” said Bott.

Summing up a tragic occurrence, Bott said: “The moral of the story here is that they’ve been a staple in the community for over 35 years. It’s a generational type of business. To have their security taken from them – that is not right after all they’ve been through.”

Bott concluded her parents could “use their community more than ever right now. They planned on retiring, hoping to enjoy the fruits of their labor, within the next few years. Even going through an experience like this, they are still optimistic, knowing they must work harder to earn for their future. They are too proud to ask and wouldn’t want to burden anyone. As their child, knowing how much they have sacrificed for all of us, any help is incredibly appreciated.”