(INDEPENDENCE, Mo., AP) — The suburban Kansas City, Missouri, parents of a quadriplegic teenager are hoping someone returns the boy’s beloved dune buggy stolen from the family’s home.

The Kansas City Star (http://bit.ly/1Sl5AVG) reports Johnathan Brende’s dune buggy was taken from the family’s Independence backyard Monday night or early Tuesday, after cutting a cable lock on a gate.

The teen’s mother, Tonni Brende, calls the machine “his life,” and that Tuesday would have been the first day this spring for him to take it out for a ride.

Michael Brende Sr. specialized a dune buggy he found for sale, and the family invested about $4,000 into it.

Tonni Brende says two other recreational vehicles recently have been stolen in the neighborhood. She says the return of the dune buggy is “what my son needs.”

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Information from: The Kansas City Star, http://www.kcstar.com