SAN DIEGO COUNTY, Calif. — There’s a message that thousands of cars and pedestrians see every day.
What was up for just the Christmas season, has been up in Lindsay Mitchell’s front yard since the pandemic started.
"Throughout the years, we've been known as the 'Joy' house," said homeowner Lindsay Mitchell. "We got letters, we got gifts. It really just became kind of sentimental to the neighborhood."
Though the letters read joy, the display in October gives it a Nightmare before Christmas vibe. Cobwebs, spiders and skeletons flank the display. But the centerpiece of it all is a twelve-foot skeleton that glows red at night.
Every Halloween it’s a hot item, and can go for thousands of dollars online. So in the middle of the night, someone tried to take it home with them.
"This guy thinks he can come in 20 minutes and take it apart. But that was not happening," said Mitchell. "He pushed it over from behind, ruined the entire yard. And fortunately, our neighbor spooked him off."
The attempted theft left the Joy house in ruin.
Mitchell and her husband had to make the decision to go through the trouble of rebuilding the display. After she posted the incident on Nextdoor- she got the motivation to build it back up again.
"The feedback that we've gotten from the community is so overwhelming," said Mitchell. "People that aren't even from this neighborhood have commented on it. And it's just...it was really touching."
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