A thief with a penchant for pink flamingos pilfered 44 birds from a Kennewick yard Saturday night.

Forty-nine flamingos were put in the yard of a home near Fourth Avenue and Joliet Avenue in Hansen Park around 10:30 p.m.

But by the time the homeowners returned from a Halloween party at 11:45 p.m., most of the birds were gone, said Jenna Boogerd, owner of Swanky Babies.

"We found legs from them in the street ... and only five birds left," said Boogerd, who has been flocking people's yards with the birds as a fundraiser. "They probably weren't even in their yard for an hour, and now they're gone."

Boogerd recently was elected as one of Tri-Cities' Finest Young Professionals by the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation, and one of her duties is to raise $2,500 for cystic fibrosis. Cystic fibrosis is an inherited chronic disease that affects the lungs and digestive system.

She decided to have a little fun with the fundraising and bought 60 flamingos -- it cost $15 for a pair -- to put in people's yards.

So far, about $1,600 has been raised.

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