BATON ROUGE — Children’s book author Rodney Smith Jr., the founder of a nonprofit that incentivizes children to perform free lawn care for those who need help, found his van burglarized over the weekend while in town for the Louisiana Book Festival.

Smith, of Alabama, launched Raising Men & Women Lawn Care Service to pair kids to perform free lawn care, leaf raking and snow shoveling for the elderly, individuals with disabilities, single parents, and veterans.

He published his debut book, One Lawn at a Time, which was rooted in his own life, a little more than three years ago. Smith says he’s published a handful of children’s books titles over the years. This was his first year attending the Louisiana Book Festival.

“These books are more than just stories,” Smith said. “They’re pieces of my life, written to inspire the next generation to lead with kindness, compassion, and a heart for serving others.”

On the morning of the event, Smith woke up to find his van in the parking lot of the Marriott hotel, off of Acadian Thruway, with two broken windows and two lawnmowers missing.

After filing a report with police, Smith still attended the festival, while a man who saw his plight online connected him to a local repair man who was able to fix his driver’s side window while he was attending the event.

“The back window is still broken,” he says. “Someone local in Alabama will fix it.”

Smith says he has not received an update on possible suspects from BRPD.