Police seek thieves who took 700-pound statue from yard
BY ZACK STOYCOFF World Staff Writer
Saturday, May 05, 2012
5/05/12 at 7:57 AM
Regina Christopher never thought she had to worry about someone taking a 700-pound sculpture from her front yard.
The life-sized bronze cast of a 5-year-old girl reading a book on her stomach, worth about $17,000, had been in a flower bed between Christopher's front porch and driveway in the 8900 block of South Kingston Avenue since 2005, when her husband bought it as a Christmas gift.
It was gone Monday morning.
"It's amazing someone could have taken it," she said. "It's not something somebody could have just picked up and walked off with."
Titled "Story Time for One," it's one of 39 identical sculptures by Tulsa artist Rosalind Cook, one of which sits near Pottery Barn Kids in Utica Square.
Christopher believes a group of thieves backed a trailer or pickup into her driveway and took it while she slept. They could have pulled within three feet of the sculpture, she said.
Police found no tire tracks or footprints in her yard, and Christopher said not even her flower bed had signs that someone had walked in it.
"They worked really hard to be very careful," she said. "We just never thought we had to worry about this."
The sculpture itself has two pieces - a girl and a book - but Christopher had them mounted onto a decorative bench years ago.
She said she saw the sculpture Sunday when she checked the flower bed for weeds. On Monday, she noticed holes in the ground where the legs of the bench had been.
"I'm heartsick about it," she said. "There's not only the value of it, but the memories of it."
She said the girl depicted in the sculpture is the same age as her granddaughter, who has grown up with it.
"She loved to sit on the bench," Christopher said. "It's probably irreplaceable."
She said her family is asking anyone who knows where the sculpture is to call police.
Tulsa Police Officer Jason Willingham said it could show up for sale on the Internet or at a local business, and although there are other versions of the sculpture, police need someone to report if they recognize it.
Christopher said media attention will at least make it hard for the thieves to sell it locally, but added that she's worried they might not be interested in selling it as-is.
"I don't know honestly if they even know the value of what they got," she said. "We're more concerned that they had stolen it for the metal."
Anyone with information about the thieves or the sculpture's whereabouts is asked to contact Crime Stoppers at 918-596-COPS or tulsaworld.com/crimestoppers
"Story Time for One"
Artist: Rosalind Cook of Tulsa
Purchased: 2005
Current value: $17,000
Estimated weight: 700 pounds
Original Print Headline: Valuable sculpture stolen from yard
Zack Stoycoff 918-581-8486
zack.stoycoff@tulsaworld.com
Associated Images:
Regina Christopher on Friday walks past what remains of the bench where a life-size bronze once sat. Christopher said the sculpture was stolen from her front yard late Sunday or early Monday. CORY YOUNG/Tulsa World
Regina Christopher sits in the spot Friday where a life-size bronze once sat. The sculpture is worth about $17,000. CORY YOUNG/Tulsa World
"Storytime for One," a 700-pound sculpture, was stolen from in front of a south Tulsa home. Courtesy
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