CHICAGO – A Chicago Catholic school slated to close after more than 100 years in operation was ransacked over the weekend, and thieves stole about $5,000 for scholarships to help students transition to new schools.

But less than a day later, alumni of St. Hyacinth Basilica School, parishioners and others replaced the money, ensuring about 75 students will receive financial aid to continue their Catholic school educations next year, the Chicago Tribune reports.

“We cannot thanks everyone enough for the heartwarming response to such a heart wrenching situation,” according to a statement on the school’s website today. “(Our) scholarships will actually be positively impacted from this very negative situation.”

MORE NEWS: Know These Before Moving From Cyprus To The UK

In less than 20 hours after a GoFundMe site was opened to replace a goal of $2,100, supporters have donated well over $2,500. St. Hyacinth closed the GoFundMe page today with a thank you to “friends, school families, neighbors, parishioners and total strangers” who donated, according to the news site.

School officials called police Monday when they returned to the school from the weekend and found someone had broken in through a back window. Inside, burglars ransacked the school office and pried open locked cabinets, one of which contained a mobile safe, CBS Chicago reports.

Thieves took the mobile safe, which contained about $5,000 – some raised during a recent alumni fundraiser to help students transition to new schools when St. Hyacinth closes in about two weeks and some for eighth-grade graduation ceremonies this week. The Catholic school has been an institution in Chicago for more than 100 years, according to the news site.

“It’s really quite unbelievable that someone would take money that they knew was for kids,” principal Christine Huzenis told CBS Chicago.

But as soon as news spread of the break-in, the financial support started pouring in. An anonymous donor stopped in to the school Monday and gave $5,000, and another contributed $3,000, Huzenis said.

That was in addition to the money raised through the GoFundMe website.

MORE NEWS: How to prepare for face-to-face classes

Angela Ybarra, a secretary for St. Hyacinth’s parent teacher board and 1983 alumna, chastised burglars in the Tribune Monday for taking the money from innocent schoolchildren.

“These are children I’ve known since they were 3. It’s just money to you, but it’s a future to these children,” Ybarra said to the burglars, nearly in tears.

“This is heartbreaking and shocking,” she said Monday. “Some of these kids will not be able to attend another school without a scholarship.”

Ybarra said the money was meant for 75 students in need of financial aid to move to new schools.

“This is a working-class neighborhood, and we are a family,” Ybarra said, speaking to the thieves. “You did more than steal a safe.”