March 25, 2010
A 6-foot-plus replica of a bomb, stolen over the weekend from the yard of Lucille Gibson, who lives in Carbondale, Illinois, is back home. The 91-year old woman was thrilled to get it back saying she was afraid it was gone for good.
The fake bomb, which was created by her late husband, welder George "Hoot" Gibson, was painted red, white and blue when it disappeared. Whoever took it had painted it bright green before deciding to abandon it in a muddy ditch, according to a report in The Southern, two Southern Illinois University students had found the bomb in the ditch. They retrieved the ornament and hauled it back to her home.
The two men were upset that it had been repainted, so they offered to restore it to the original colors. Gibson found the paint and the young men spent three hours repainting it. Gibson's daughter and son-in-law plan to re-install the landmark soon, possibly in a place where it won't be so easy to carry off.
