Health Care Access clinic employees planned to set up two big tents for its open house Thursday, but the tents were missing.

At 1 p.m., the tents were in a window well on the south side of the building, 330 Maine, and at 3 p.m. they were gone.

Nikki King, executive director, said she hopes the $500 tents — one is white and one is blue, and both have the Kansas Ironman logo — will be returned or recovered because the clinic will have to replace them.

That’s money that would be spent on providing care for Douglas County residents who don’t have insurance. King said $1,000 would provide care for about 80 patients for a couple of months.

The tents also were going to be used during the clinic’s major fundraiser next Saturday: the 2010 Lynn Electric Kansas Marathon. The tents belong to the race director.

Anyone with information about the theft is urged to call the anonymous Crime Stoppers tips line at 785-843-TIPS.