(NECN: Alysha Palumbo, Mansfield, Mass.) - These pink flamingos may look like just lawn ornaments, but to Arthur and Sandi O'Neil of Mansfield, Massachusetts they're a special hobby they picked up after retiring in 2007.

Sandi said, "When he first started doing them, I just got a big chuckle out of them and then I thought to myself, this is good, it keeps him off the street, it keeps him amused."

And as time went on Arthur started really enjoying dressing up his birds for holidays, events and parties.

They don Santa hats for Christmas, look like leprechauns on St. Patrick's Day and dance around the May pole for May Day.

But this past Memorial Day Weekend, Arthur came outside to check on his pink plastic friends, as they stood patriotically with flags raised, and he was shocked at what he found.

Arthur said, "I walked out and I only had two left, 14 of them flew the coup…without their legs."

Sandi said, "I was so disgusted, just like he was, I just said it's got to be kids, but it's too bad that they have nothing better to do."

Sandi says Arthur was so disheartened by the theft, he was ready to give up on the flamingos altogether.

Then the local paper ran a story about the missing birds, and the community started responding.

Arthur's landscaper made a donation.

He said, "He gave me $20 bucks, he says buy some more, so I bought four more."

And a Mansfield High School teacher took up a collection, and brought over ten more…along with costumes to boot.

They got so many donations, they now have back-ups!

Arthur said, "So right now these guys are relaxing, the other ones are outside."

The O'Neils found out they had quite a following - people who had been stopping by to take pictures of the flamingos in their different costumes for the past four and a half years.

And that means everything the O'Neils.

Sandi said, "It makes me feel good because it says there's good people in the world and they appreciated what he was doing."

Arthur said, "As long as a person smiles, that to me is the ultimate thrill."