HOLMES BEACH – A local is asking for the public’s help after a decorative lighthouse that he calls a family heirloom was stolen from his yard. Wayne Giordano, a New York native, brought the lighthouse with him when his family bought their home on the corner of 36th Street and Gulf Drive.
“We don’t live here full-time and rent our house to tourists sometimes when we’re not here,” Giordano said. “When the lighthouse disappeared we actually didn’t have anyone renting the house. It went missing the last week of September into the first week of October, but I have no way of knowing exactly what day.”
Giordano says the lighthouse is about four feet tall, rotates and is electrically powered, shining a light as it rotates. He says due to the size and weight, the person who took it would have most likely needed a truck, as it would be difficult to fit it in an average car.
“The lighthouse has been in the family for 15 to 20 years,” Giordano said. “I had it in my home in the Catskill Mountains and, when we bought here in 2016, I brought it down 2,000 miles. We have a lot of good family memories, it reminds us of good times. It’s not about the thousand dollars we paid for it; it’s all about the memories.”
Giordano says when he put it on the corner, he didn’t want the light to bother anyone, including wildlife, so he put it on a timer to only run a few hours after sunset and changed the 40-watt bulb to a 15-watt. There were never any complaints from neighbors. A police report was filed with Holmes Beach Police but no suspect has been identified.
Giordano is offering a $250 reward for the return of the lighthouse. He says no questions will be asked and no charges will be pressed if the lighthouse is returned. He just wants the lighthouse returned safely. Anyone with information on the whereabouts of the lighthouse is asked to call 917-842-0670. Anonymous calls are welcome.
