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GRAFTON, Mass. - A Northbridge business owner discovered his restored Christmas sleigh was stolen after leaving a wake at Roney Funeral Home.
Dan Perry left the antique wooden sleigh in the back of his pickup truck while attending the Saturday afternoon service of Ernie Peters, a longtime resident of Grafton and former firefighter. Perry stopped in to pay his respects, stayed for two hours, and then left at approximately 4:30 p.m. While driving home, he noticed the 200 pound item was gone.
“I can’t believe someone would do it at Ernie’s wake,” Perry said in a phone interview. He then detoured to the Grafton Police Department to file a report.
“I was planning on decorating it and then putting it in front of my business during the holidays when we sell Christmas trees,” he added.
Perry assessed the sleigh’s value as between $1,500 and $2,000.
Perry attended the wake because he and Peters were friends since childhood. As adults, they worked together for a time hauling hay from Canada. During that period, Perry introduced Peter to his future wife.
Perry is the owner of Perry’s Auto Sales and Service in Northbridge. He purchased the 19th century sleigh in New York state and spent the summer restoring it, describing it as one that Santa Claus would ride in, with a dark green paint finish, steel rudders, and a polished brass plate. He said that the thieves, in their haste, left the black seat cushions behind.
If you have any information about this theft, contact the Grafton Police Department at 508-839-2858.
Comments (8)
Commoncents it appears you have NONE! This is Dan's daughter...So let me clairify for you....This 200 plus size sliegh did not fall off his truck as you suggusted. It was there when he arrived at Roney's...It was not when he left! Dan was very shaken up by all this. He himself cannot believe anyone would take it at Ernie's wake no less. I am very offended by your comments, in fact I find them slanderis. I guess it's easy to say things when you don't use your own name on comments!
Mr Johnson, perhaps I didn't express myself clear enough in my post. I do not know Mr. Perry or anything about him, you seem to be a very good friend of his and are speaking highly of his character. What I am saying is it is very possible that the Sleigh came up missing before he got to Roneys. Are you certain it wasn't taken from his Truck before he got there or did it fall out earlier. I am not proclaiming to be an investigator like you wrote but I myself find it hard to believe that anyone would have the nerve to do something like that at a Funeral Home while there are people entering and exiting. Lastly since this story first broke there have been a few people who I have heard from myself that said they saw him arrive and had no recollection of it being in the back of his truck. I suppose I must thank you for calling me an ass for I have been called far worse.
You are welcome :)
Thank you jojohohnson for standing up for Dan!
Yes commoncents, I'm sure Dan Perry made up the whole story. I'm quite sure Dan needed to draw unnecessary to himself because he loves the spot light. Of course you know Dan so well that you can bring his character in to play by suggesting that he would fabricate this nonsense. Yes Yes I can see your point now...Dan Perry who goes out of his way to help a lot of people...a man who is financially well off...a very secure man with strong roots here...has indeed decided to swipe his own sleigh out of his own truck. At his friends wake no less, and this is all assuming there is even a sleigh missing right commonsense. I mean why bother loading a sleigh into a truck and then steal it, when you can save a lot of time and energy by just saying there was a slay and it has gone missing. Brilliant deduction at least that seems where it is going with your comment. I'm sure all of Grafton's Finest are on the case now. I Believe they had a special false sleigh task force assembled as soon as they realized that "commonsense" felt the whole thing was fishy and suspicious.
You, sir are an ass. Thank you for your expert observations at your friends wake.
I find it extremely hard to believe that with all the people at Ernie's wake including myself that no one saw anyone take a sleigh out of a Truck. There were people coming in and out of Roneys the whole time. I think this whole story is highly suspicious, hopefully the police feel the same.
Not for nothin, but seeing you discovered it was gone on your way HOME, check the roads on the way, maybe it fell out or some passerby scooped it up?
That is absolutly dispicable! To cause such anguish to anyone for any reason, let alone to someone grieving for a friend at a funeral home is just deplorable. This is blazen discount for social order in our society. Some one has had to witness some thing and needs to come forward. This is just not right.