ORLANDO, Fla. – After being burglarized in February, the Wells' Built Museum, which sits in the shadows of the Amway Center in the Parramore neighborhood, received a new set of Orlando Magic memorabilia to display inside.
Elizabeth Thompson, the museum's director, said someone broke through one of the museum's front doors earlier this year to steal valuable jerseys and autographs, items that highlighted important players and moments in the franchise's history.
"It was honestly very discouraging," she said.
With the help of the Orlando Magic, the museum of African American History and Culture has new mementos to honor the franchise, including jerseys, pictures and pennants signed by prominent players such as Shaquille O'Neal, Grant Hill, Vince Carter, Dwight Howard and the team's first draft pick in franchise history, Nick Anderson.
"Hopefully this can mend the broken heart," Anderson said.
Several of Anderson's personal mementos were among the items stolen.
"You just don't touch history," he said. "One of my original jerseys, a pair of my sneakers, it was a part of history. It meant something to me."
Police are still searching for the person responsible for breaking into the museum, which has since installed cameras and a new security system.