Vandals twice damage Christmas displays in Dayton neighborhood

A gang of Grinches swept down twice on a Dayton yard decorated for the holiday, but they haven't stolen the Christmas spirit of the residents yet.

Dana Jennings and her husband, Thomas, spent hours putting up Christmas decorations in their yard, only to have them vandalized on consecutive Saturdays.

There were Nativity scenes, snowmen, Santa with reindeer galore; lighted, animated figures, blow-up characters and spiral Christmas trees turning their Pebble Drive yard into a festive fantasy land.

"We had all different kinds," said Dana Jennings. "We love it so much, and (the vandalism) just made us so mad. We do it for our kids." The Jennings' children are ages 9, 4 and 17 months.

"Last Saturday when they did it, they actually cut the lights on the light-up reindeer," said Jennings. "Now we have to replace all the lights and everything."

The raids occurred about 10:30 p.m. on Dec. 3 and again on Saturday, Jennings said, adding that on Saturday, her husband had seen four teenage boys running from the yard. They found the wooden figures broken, strings of lights cut and other damage.

"We have a Nativity scene that's all wood," she said. "They went for that one twice. They tried to get it the first time and couldn't. They had dropped the Nativity set and one of the reindeer."

Jennings said the wooden figures were irreplaceable.

"We've lost six or seven of the large wooden ones," she said. "They can't be redone. They were made by a friend of ours and her husband, who passed away Saturday."

Jennings said she filed police reports, but so far the vandals have not been identified.

Though the family has lived in Dayton for two years, they have only been at the Pebble Drive home for three months.

Jennings said the family repaired the displays after the Dec. 3 incident and will this time, too. But their tolerance is not without limits.

"I'm probably going to do it one more time," she said. "If it happens again, I'm probably going to pull everything out of the yard."

n Contact reporter Karen Woodmansee at kwoodmansee@nevadaappeal.com or 882-2111, ext. 351.

You can help

Anyone with information on the vandalism of the Christmas displays, call the Lyon County Sheriff's Office, Dayton substation at 246-6200.