Mother apologizes for son's actions

IC photo by Christine Young

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Father Andrzej Skrzypiec, pastor of Saint Ambrose Parish, welcomes the statue of St. Ambrose back after being stolen. Fr. Andrzej thought he would never see the statue again.

SALT LAKE CITY - Filled with tears and remorse for her son's actions, Cindy Hayward apologized to Father Andrzej Skrzypiec, pastor of Saint Ambrose Parish, March 3, four days after the statue of St. Ambrose went missing.

Police found the statue, which was taken from the church on March 13, in the garage of Chris Hayward's Midvale home on March 15," Fr. Andrzej said, adding that Chris Hayward is being held on suspicion of second-degree felony possession of stolen property.

"His mother said this is his first felony and that he was always a kind-hearted person," said Fr. Andrzej. "She said he is on drugs and hopefully when he gets his mind straight he will come and apologize. She wants me to tell the people of St. Ambrose that his parents are very sorry for this offense and they will help financially to repair the statue."

Damage to the statue was minimal, Fr. Andrzej said. The damages included a Superman-style "S" painted in a triangle on the statue's chest and underneath was painted the initial C. There were scratches on the nose and the book St. Ambrose is holding. Fr. Andrzej will seek expert advise about the repairs.

"I try to remember that when people commit any kind of crime, behind each one of them is a mother or father who feels the pain and the shame of what his or her child did," said Fr. Andrzej. "It took courage for her to come and humble herself, and say ‘I am the mother and I am sorry for what my son did.'

"I really think this whole thing is miraculous," he said. "I did not think we would ever find the statue. I thought by Monday the statue would have been melted down. You certainly could not take it to a pawn shop."

Fr. Andrezej said he was saying good-bye to parishioners following the 5 p.m. Mass March 13, when a young girl about 14 years old ran up and asked where the statue was. I couldn't imagine what she was talking about," he said. "I went outside and looked at the pedestal in front of the church and saw only two screws sticking up. I was in disbelief. Then it flashed in my mind about the mermaid statue that had recently been stolen and I realized ours had probably been stolen, too."

Fr. Andrzej called the police and parishioners started calling the media.

"I thought someone must have backed a truck up to it and used a crane because it is very heavy," he said. "When the police arrived, we checked the cameras and saw the flash of tail lights about 3:10 a.m. Saturday morning."

Fr. Andrzej is going to make sure the statue is mounted more securely and that surveillance cameras are in place.

The statue was donated by a former St. Ambrose parishioner, Edward Zajac, 94, in honor of his wife Agnes, who died in 1981. "He called and told me the story when I first became the pastor here last year," said Fr. Andrzej. "He also called quite upset when he heard the statue had been stolen. He was pleased the statue had been found. Zajac said in 1982 he gave the church a stock worth $17,000 to purchase the statue. By the time the statue was paid for in 1989, the stock had doubled. Zajac gives a $1,000 donation every year to St. Ambrose to maintain the statue as a sentimental gift."