Awareness=Answers

Sylvester McCurry

A tragic ending to the desperate search for a missing Minnesota teen-ager.  Sylvester McCurry was recovered on May 22 in Lake Superior.  The family posted this on Facebook earlier today, “The battle for Sylvester missing is over. Questions are not answered but knowing Sly is in a much better place puts the heart at ease. We will always always miss and love you Sylvester.”

Sylvester was found wearing the same clothes that he was last seen in and his wallet was in his pocket. The 18-year-old from Duluth, MN was last seen on January 17, 2010.  Surveillance video shows him leaving the Stargate Night Club in Superior, Wisconsin and walking down an alley. His body was recovered on the city of Superior side of Lake Superior.

According to a Superior police report, “information received from the beginning of the case indicated that McCurry was intoxicated on the night he disappeared. As a result, investigators have considered the possibility that McCurry attempted to cross the St. Louis River or harbor in an attempt to get back to Duluth.”

The family believes foul play was involved. An autopsy is underway to determine the cause and manner of death.

Kristi Piehl Uncategorized

Sylvester McCurry

Sylvester “Sly” McCurry’s family is making a plea to anglers on the fishing opener weekend in Minnesota.  They are hoping the extra eyes may spot a clue that could lead to Sly.

The 18-year-old from Duluth, MN was last seen on January 17, 2010. Surveillance video shows him leaving the Stargate Night Club in Superior, Wisconsin and walking down an alley.

Sly’s sister told the FOX affiliate in Duluth, “People think oh he just ran away or he wanted to get away for a while. He didn’t run away. It’s serious, it’s just like as important as a child who went missing, it is someone’s child, it’s my mother’s baby and it’s my brother.”

Sly was last seen wearing jeans, a gray fleece jacket and white Nikes.  His cell phone is a Sony and also remains missing.

Kristi Piehl Uncategorized

Jonathan Lacina

It’s too soon to be certain, but a pathologist who has worked on the Jonathan Lacina case says it’s unlikely foul play was involved in his death.  Dr. Michele Catellier told a TV reporter that there is nothing found on the autopsy that would lead her to believe foul play was involved. Click here to watch an interview with Dr. Catellier.

Jonathan Lacina was last seen leaving a party near the Iowa State University campus on January 22, 2010.  He was headed home, but his body was found in April in the opposite direction of his apartment. He was recovered in an abandoned building that was part of the college’s old dairy farm.

Many tests have been performed by the State Medical Examiner’s Office, but it will take weeks for the results. A cause and manner of death will be determined when the results are complete.

So far, the pathologists working on the case have been to the farmhouse and talked with police investigators who say there isn’t any indication of foul play.

Lacina is the fourth college man in recent years to disappear under strange circumstances. Click here to read a previous post about the other cases.

Kristi Piehl Uncategorized

Bryce Tarter

Earlier this week, the truck of missing Armstrong Atlantic State University student, Bryce Tarter, was recovered in the water around Bell’s Landing in Savannah, Georgia.  Now authorities are confirming that Bryce was found in the driver’s seat.

Authorities are waiting for test results before releasing how Bryce died. However, his family is telling Georgia media that they’ve been told foul play is not suspected. His family still has unanswered questions – like why it took so long to find the truck.  Crews used a special sonar device to locate the missing 19-year-old’s truck in 13 feet of water. The same waterway was searched by crews in February, but nothing was found.

Here are some details about Bryce’s disappearance from his family as posted on their website bringbrycehome.com.  Bryce was at a party Saturday night, January 30th at Georgia Southern. From there, his friends state they drove him back to his school, Armstrong Atlantic, his truck was parked. We believe he was heading home, to Guyton at approximately 3:30 AM, January 31st. The route, we believe he would have taken, would be Highway 204 to Old River Road. There are other routes as well but this would have been the most logical. His cell phone can not be tracked, but the phone did not turn off until 1:37 PM, January 31st. Sprint is one of the only carriers that can not track a cell phone once it is off. They are also unable to determine where he was when he sent his last text soon after he left. We are also unable to track the GPS. His bank account has not been used since his disappearance.

Click here to read an earlier posting about Bryce.

Kristi Piehl Uncategorized

Brandon Swanson

It’s been nearly two years since Brandon Swanson mysteriously disappeared in Minnesota and his family and authorities have not given up the search for Brandon and answers.

This weekend, the Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension will resume searching for any sign of Brandon.  KSFY-TV in Sioux Falls, SD is reporting that  the BCA will bring in dogs to search a large portion of the Yellow Medicine river from Porter to Granite Falls.

Brandon was last seen in rural western Minnesota in May 2008. He was confused about his location and talking to his father on his cell phone when it suddenly went dead. Many searches have failed to locate Brandon.

UPDATE : No trace of Brandon was found during the weekend search. Crews are meeting this week to determine the next step in the search.

Click here to read about the ongoing effort to find Brandon.

Kristi Piehl Uncategorized

Jonathan Lacina

Iowa State University Officials are now confirming that the body found on April 14, 2010 is missing student, Jonathan Lacina.

He was found in a building on an abandoned dairy farm near ISU.  Police had searched the building in the days after Jon disappeared, but officials say they were dealing with deep snow.

The cause and manner of death will be determined by the Medical Examiner. Officials say it may take several weeks before results are released.

Click here to read more from Iowa State University.

Our prayers are extended to Jon’s family, friends and the ISU community.

Kristi Piehl Uncategorized

There is speculation that a body found on the campus of Iowa State University could be 21-year-old Jonathan Lacina. He has been missing since January 22, 2010 and was last seen leaving a party near campus.

Here is a press release issued by ISU:

AMES, Iowa — Iowa State University Police have located a body inside an isolated room of an outlying farm building.

At approximately 8:30 p.m. on April 14, an ISU Police officer was examining remote areas of the property south of campus (between Mortensen Road and Highway 30) when he discovered the body of a deceased male inside a brick structure. The building, which is no longer used for agricultural purposes, is located on ISU’s Old Dairy Farm site approximately one mile south of central campus.

Officers are being assisted by the Iowa Division of Criminal Investigation, the State Crime Laboratory, the Ames Police Department, and the Story County Sheriff’s Office.

The case remains under investigation. Determination of the cause and manner of death is pending the results of medical tests. An autopsy is scheduled to be performed later today.

Kristi Piehl Uncategorized

Todd Geib

Josh Szostak

Inspired by Todd Geib’s Facebook page calling for authorities to “Re-Open Todd Geib’s Case,” Josh Szostak’s sister launched a similar Facebook page. Both groups now have more than 3500 members. The messages to the families are encouraging them and giving them hope that there is strength in numbers.

Click to see the FB group “Re-open Joshua W. Szostak’s Case”

Click to see the FB group “Re-open Todd Geib’s Case”

Todd’s family is using the FB page to publish new information about Todd’s case.  This message was sent to the group today, “Kathy Geib, Todd’s mom, spoke to Lt. Schram from the MICh ST Pol yesterday. He said,’I don’t want to give you false hope.. there is NO WAY that this case is getting investigated.’”

Todd’s family is refusing to give up and they continue to call agencies. There are discussions of local protests to gain attention for Todd.

Click here to read about new evidence that prompted the Geib family to take action.

Kristi Piehl Uncategorized

To help advance the discussion of missing men and unexplained drowning deaths  and to remove any distractions to the mission and message of the site  - the discussion boards will be password protected. The new boards are open and accessible at the top right of this page. To request a password, email  jbrown324320@gmail.com.

The old threads will remain open until 10:00 pm (eastern) Monday, March 29.

Thanks for understanding and for helping raise awareness and find answers.

Kristi Piehl Uncategorized

Bryce Tarter

Bryce Daniel Tarter, 19, is 6 feet tall and weighs 155 pounds. He has light brown hair and blue eyes and was last seen on January 30, 2010 in Savannah, Georgia. If you have any information that could bring him home, call 910.232.1687 or 911.

According to Bryce’s friends, they spent the evening at a party and drove him back to his school, Armstrong Atlantic.  When they arrived, they say Bryce got in his truck and drove away.  He then sent a strange text message to one of his friends and hasn’t been seen or heard from since. His white 2000 Nissan Frontier truck is also missing. The license plates are Maine - 944 7QD

The cell company tells Bryce’s family that his cell phone can’t be tracked and they aren’t able to determine the location of the phone when the last text message was sent.

take action | visit Bryce’s website | join his facebook group

Kristi Piehl Missing