Woman Pleads For Help After Thief Steals Mother's Rings From Gym Locker
FRAMINGHAM (CBS) - Courtney Balacco is devastated. Her mother's wedding band and engagement ring she gave to her when she passed were swiped from her locker at Life Time Athletic Club in Framingham.
"I just felt disbelief and heartbreak," Balacco said. "I just knew they were gone."
Balacco has a rare hand condition that requires her to remove her rings when she works out to avoid pain.
"When I went to lock it, the lock got really stiff and kept like jamming, and not locking the whole way," Balacco said. "But I was able to set a code and turned the thing to the right which is how you lock it."
When she returned from her workout and opened her locker her rings were gone.
"It means everything to me and it's the only piece of her I really have," Balacco said.
She searched everywhere in the locker room, spoke with Life Time staff members and filled out both a club and police report. "Today was the first day since 2006 since I have not worn those rings. It was so hard for me to leave the house this morning," Balacco cried.
Courtney says the rings are worth about $10,000 but it's not the money that matters. Those rings are a symbol of her mother's love and wisdom.
"I think that's why they mean so much to me because it's a symbol of that," Balacco said. "You know grief does not have an expiration date and I am reliving it because another part of her is now gone."
Courtney says she's been wearing her mother's rings ever since she passed. She hopes the person who took them out of her locker would return those rings with no questions asked.
"I hope I get my rings back, there are good people out there," Balacco said.
Life Time Athletic General Manager Steven Gum said the club is obviously very upset over this incident and that they are currently doing a full investigation and working with Framingham Police.