AUBURN - It was a symbol of patriotism.

Four years ago, Judi and Alan Shellenberger, of Auburn, had a professional banner made for their son, Michael, a staff sergeant in the U.S. Army who was deployed to Iraq for seven months in 2003, welcoming him back from his tour and honoring the sacrifice he and the military have made for the country.

The banner, which simply said, “Welcome Home Michael” in red, white and blue, hung from trees in the yard of the Shellenberger's home on South Street every time Michael returned home from duty.

And it hung during the last days of August, when he was home for some R&R during his tour in Afghanistan with the 82nd Airborne stationed at Fort Bragg, N.C. which began in February.

But on Sunday, Sept. 2, three days before Michael was to leave Auburn for Fort Bragg to be

re-deployed, someone trespassed onto the Shellenbergers' property, unceremoniously cut down the banner, and stole it.

“It was heart-wrenching Judi said. ”First I thought, 'Well, it must of blown away or come untied.' But then I saw the rope was cut. Who would do such a thing? Come on our property and steal something that was valuable to me?“

The Shellenbergers had recently moved to Auburn from Washington, D.C. Judi said she was shocked that someone thought they had the right to take the banner in a “congenial place where everyone is friendly.”

The banner had little monetary value, but it meant the world to the Shellenbergers.

“It was a symbol to me personally,” said Judi, executive director of the Christopher Columbus Fellowship Foundation. “It was our thank you to all of the people serving in the Army, Navy, Marines and the sacrifices they have made.”

They have sacrificed their lives, jobs and families, she said. and the comforts of home Americans take for granted.

Michael can't talk to family and friends on his cell phone or watch television or see the latest movie, she said.

For Alan, stealing the banner was no different than stealing an American flag.

“The sign was an additional representation of our idea that any idea is worth fighting for,” said the Auburn businessman. “There should be some symbolism. Flag, banner; It really doesn't matter.”

Michael, 26, joined the army in 2000, looking to gain some focus, Judi said.

In 2003 he was deployed to Iraq when troops first marched into Baghdad. Seven months later, his parents greeting him at the airport with the banner in hand.

“He was so happy to see us and thought it was a nice gesture,” she said.

In 2005 he was sent to Iraq for a nine-month tour. He returned home; the banner hung yet again.

He is now in the middle of a 15-month tour of Afghanistan.

“He loves what he does,” she said. “He is very proud of the job they're doing.”

And the Shellenbergers are in disbelief that someone could take their patriotic symbol away from them.

“It's a changing moral time that constantly appears to be getting worse,” Alan said. “And the stealing of this banner is another representation of why we've gone backwards rather than forward in our progress.”

Alan said that he - for a moment - considered offering a reward for the return of the banner.

“But offering a reward is almost the same thing as being paid for being patriotic and doing the right thing,” he said. “You shouldn't pay people for doing the right thing.”

The Shellenbergers want the sign back, and if they don't get it they will make another, they said.

“I'd love to get it back but I think people should realize that it's not just a sign,” Judi said. “It's a symbol of the sacrifices America's children are making on behalf of the United States.”

Staff writer Alyssa Sunkin can be reached at alyssa.sunkin@lee.net or 253-5311 ext. 239