A Halloween theft turned into a heartwarming surprise for a North Texas school, thanks to the Dallas Mavericks.
Trail Lake Montessori School in southwest Fort Worth had its beloved “Dirk skeleton” stolen last week—a life-sized Halloween decoration dressed in a Dirk Nowitzki jersey.
The school’s director, Onesimo Bazan, is a devoted Mavs fan. His office is filled with memorabilia, and each October he outfits a skeleton in his own Dirk jersey to welcome families.
“I usually turn stuff into Mavs stuff, so I turned them into Dirk skeletons,” Bazan said.
But last week, Bazan arrived at school to find the decoration missing.
“When I got here this morning, I noticed it was gone,” he said.
Security footage appeared to show three people with bandanas over their faces trying to enter the school and a neighboring church during the night.
“I also figured man, no one would steal from a church and a school, you know?” Bazan said. “But unfortunately that’s what happened.”
The school filed a police report. Bazan said students, many of them Mavericks fans because of him, were disappointed.
“They’re all sad, because they know that’s the Dirk skeleton,” he said. “I just hope that we find it so I can get my Dirk back, that’s all.”
A friend of the school posted the surveillance video online. After NBC 5 aired Bazan’s story, the Dallas Mavericks reached out with a surprise.
On Monday, team mascot Champ visited Trail Lake Montessori, handed out Mavs merchandise and gifted Bazan a brand new jersey to replace the one that was stolen. The team also delivered a new skeleton—this time dressed in the jersey of star point guard Kyrie Irving.
Bazan said it felt like Halloween was back on track.
“Mavs are a big part of my life and so is this school, my kids, and having them all together, it was amazing,” he said. “Dream come true for me.”