The criminal swiped two flat-screen TVs, two DVD players and a digital camera from the home off Rocky Step Road, said Putnam Sheriff Mark Smith.
“It’s horrible,” said Aaron Wood, managing partner of Eimors Construction, which built the house. “I just hope they catch whoever did this.”
The $500,000 house was built on a donated lot at the Cobblestone subdivision to raise money for St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital in Tennessee. The hospital helps children fight cancer and other life-threatening illnesses with research and medical care, at no cost for the children’s families. People have been buying raffle tickets for a chance to win the luxurious house.
The stolen goods belonged to St. Jude’s staff members and volunteers, said Dan Warbel, associate director of the state’s St. Jude office. “What was missing is not that significant,” Warbel said. “It’s just the principle.”
Last year, Eimors and Cobblestone teamed up for the fund-raising project. About 40 Eimors employees and 20 volunteers have worked on the house since construction started in October, Wood said.
Nationwide, the Dream Home program is St. Jude’s third largest fundraising campaign, Warbel said. The Scott Depot home is West Virginia’s first, and has raised almost $800,000 for the hospital. Its construction was inspired by the story of Ben Bowen, a Huntington toddler who died of a brain tumor in 2005.
Whoever stole the items knew the house was for charity, Wood said. “There’s a sign out front that says this has been donated and built for St. Jude’s.”
He hopes a Web cam across the street will help investigators. The camera was installed so people could view the house on the Internet. “We actually will have a picture of the person who did it,” Wood said.
Wood and Warbel said the thief probably entered the home through an unlocked front window. On Saturday and Sunday, more than 1,500 people toured the house. They suspect someone unlocked the window, then returned Sunday night to burglarize the home.
Similar incidents have occurred at other St. Jude Dream Homes across the country, Warbel said. Last year, someone stole electronics from a Dream Home in Kansas City, Mo. “We’ve never had a house vandalized or anything like that,” he said.
St. Jude’s won’t let the crime deter its cause, Warbel said. WCHS-TV is still set to host the big giveaway on Sunday from 2 to 4 p.m.
Anyone with information about the break-in should call the Putnam County Sheriff’s Department at 586-0256.
To contact staff writer Alison Knezevich, use e-mail or call 348-1240.
