Grinches steal snowmen from Winter Wonderland

It didn't take long for thieves, or at least destructive mischief makers, to celebrate one of Maryville's shabbier Christmas traditions.

Just a little more than a week after area Girl Scouts got the lights and displays set up for Winter Wonderland in Franklin Park, somebody − or more likely several somebodies − felt compelled to fuel their inner Grinch and rip stuff off.

Missing in action are two 7-foot-tall plywood snowmen, stolen by vandals sometime before Friday evening's visit from Santa Claus, a regular weekly event during December looked forward to by hundreds of local children.

Last year, it was the reindeer that got stolen. Four of the group of five were taken, leaving only − you guessed it − Rudolph.

Thefts and vandalism during the holiday season are common at the park, which for years has been the traditional spot in Maryville where parents take their children to meet St. Nick.

When longtime Winter Wonderland custodians Carol Jean and Harold Osborn handed in their well-earned elf hats two years ago, the Girl Scouts took over, determined to preserve the little red Santa's House and other decorations for a new generation of children.

And their commitment and determination have paid off. The park looks great.

Bob Bush, a retired Northwest Missouri State University administrator and civic leader, made new reindeer, and nearly 300 Girl Scouts from 25 area troops raised money for more lights. Bill Ogle, the grandfather of one of the Scouts, built a stable for the Nativity scene.

Now, each Friday evening through Dec. 21, scores of youngsters and their parents will queue up in front of Santa's cottage, make their Christmas wishes, and then gather in a nearby heated pavilion for popcorn and hot chocolate.

Assuming, of course, that whoever keeps defacing and stealing the decorations can resist the urge to scar and destroy that special part of Christmas that is experienced only through the wide eyes of small children.

Meaningless theft is so routine at the park, according to Scout volunteer Linda Christensen, that volunteers didn't even bother placing baby Jesus in the newly built crèche.

When vandals hit Winter Wonderland, Christensen said, the infant in the manger is almost certain to be the first thing stolen.

Still, the Girl Scouts are determined to keep Winter Wonderland going. If the vandalism continues, Christensen said area troops will repair and replace what they can and keep working to make sure local children have a place where, at least once a year, joy and hope surround and transform everything that is small and mean and bitter and hurtful.

"We may not be able to replace everything they steal every year," Christensen said. "But if we can just keep the lights on, I think that's the important thing."