Thieves Stole Woman’s Gazing Balls That Contain Her Grandparent’s Ashes
A woman in Austin, Texas has had some gazing balls in her front yard for nearly a decade.
You probably remember the craze around them awhile back - a glass ball with patterns and vibrant colors that sat on some sort of pedestal, and typically found in a garden.
When Gail Hine and her parents both had "gazing balls" in her front yard for years as a way to beautify the yard. They stayed for years, with no problem.
When Gail's parents passed away during the pandemic, their family didn't think twice about including the ashes within some custom gazing balls as part of a memorial area to them.
The gazing balls' designs had a big sentimental value (for obvious reasons, this is grandma and grandpa we're talking about), but a thief came along and snagged the two on Wednesday night.
“I look over at my gazing ball garden, and it just seemed to be a little bit light,” Gail told KXAN. “Mom and dad are gone.”
Obviously, there's the sentimental value that makes these priceless, but on the financial side, gazing balls only cost about $25. However, once you factor in the gazing balls, their stands, and some sand, the thief thinks they've gotten away with about $200 in decorations.
Gail told KXAN that no, she hasn't reached out to the police, because she doesn't think there's much they'll be able to do about some stolen lawn decorations, but she is asking for her community's help to find where they went. She's even set up an email to take tips on their location. It's southaustingazingballs@gmail.com.
“There was no way for him to know that my two parents were in those gazing balls,” Gail said. “Please just bring back my parents.”
Read more at KXAN
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