Joseph Brickman with Milwaukee Choristers is kicking himself for not keeping his surveillance camera on at his Milwaukee home off 25th Street and Hampton Avenue after thieves took off with the group's trailer.
“It’s something I normally always do and on the rare occasion that it’s off, that just happened to be one of them,” said Brickman.
Between 12 p.m. Saturday and 6 p.m. Sunday, Brickman said someone stole the 6 ft. by 10 ft. trailer he was storing in his backyard for the singing group. The trailer had three padlocks on it, one on each of the doors, and one on the hitch, according to Brickman.
Inside the trailer, there were risers, railings and a large podium the group uses at performances. The trailer and stage equipment is worth up to $20,000.
“It’s hard to appreciate the value until you have to look into replacing it,” said Brickman.
The loss was even more upsetting since Milwaukee Choristers has two shows coming up at Schwan Hall at Wisconsin Lutheran College. One on Friday night, another Saturday night.
But there’s a bright side to the story. The arts community in Milwaukee heard what happened to Milwaukee Choristers and wanted to help.
“Other organizations that offered equipment when they found out. So, UW-Parkside and also the City of Festivals Men’s Chorus,” said Jim Halverson, Board of Directors with Milwaukee Choristers.
Also, Wisconsin Lutheran College, the location of the weekend shows, is loaning its stage equipment to the group including six risers and a podium.
For Milwaukee Choristers, it doesn’t come as a surprise to see the arts community reach out.
“To have them help out is great, and we would do the same thing,” said Halverson.
On Thursday, Milwaukee Police Department said the trailer is still missing and officers are still looking for whoever is responsible for the theft.
