3-weeks ago I was shocked to learn about the disappearance of Lauren Spierer. In case you haven’t heard – although I don’t know how you haven’t – she is a 20-year old upcoming junior who, after a night out with her friends, disappeared just minutes from her college-town apartment in Indiana. She was last seen around 4:30 a.m. She’s a petite girl, blond hair and, according to friends and family, a real sweetheart.
This hit home for me real hard. Lauren is just a year under me, and this could happen to anyone. As the weeks progress, seeing the footage of her family and reading the countless news articles online has my heart aching just hoping someone could #FindLauren.
Lauren attended Camp Towanda in her childhood, and is a Long Island native. My friends who also attended that camp remembered her the same way she has been described: happy, giving, and friendly. It is such a shame, and truly heartbreaking for those who love Lauren, that she has been missing this long without any leads to where she could be.
Police have released the following timeline detailing Lauren’s last noted locations:
1:46 a.m. — Enters Kilroy’s Sports Bar.
2:27 a.m. — Exits Kilroy’s
2:48 a.m. — Enters a North/South alley between 10th and College Apartments and 10th and College Village.
2:51 a.m. — Exits the alley, heading toward an empty lot north of 10th & College Village Apartments.
4:30 a.m. — Last seen at 11th and College Ave.
Lauren was last seen wearing black leggings, and a white top. She is very petite and has long blonde hair. However, police
This is the last photo of Lauren, caught on video
say her appearance could have been altered. She is just like you and me, a college student out with friends celebrating the end of the semester… walking home one minute, gone the next.
As of late, police have ruled out any leads which seemed promising about a truck in the area caught on surveillance tapes, and even a found bag of clothes. The search tips are looking dim, but those close to Lauren are not giving up hope. Imagine if Lauren was your daughter, best friend, girlfriend. Imagine the pain and heartache those who love Lauren are feeling. I know I can imagine it. I know that my parents would never give up looking for me – just hoping I would be found. And Lauren still can be! Think of all of the stories about teens abducted and found – some even as long as 18-years later! But those who love Lauren don’t want it to get that far…
Here lies the power of social media. Someone out there knows where Lauren is. Someone out there knows something that can help lead to finding Lauren. Someone out there needs to speak up. Lauren’s family and friends have been using Twitter, Facebook and even blogs to get the word about Lauren out there. I encourage anyone who reads my blog to re-blog this information out to your followers as well. Any little bit helps.
If you want to get more involved than just blogging, here are some ways, via Lauren’s social media outlets covering her story:
14 Tips to Help #FindLauren
Tip 1: Tweet Lauren’s info out to your followers… again. #Twitter feeds move quickly, tweets get lost.
Tip 2: Tweet 5-10 high profile people from this list and ask them to RT her info: http://www.twibes.com/celebrity/twitter-list
Tip 3: Tweet your local media and ask them to cover/keep covering the Lauren Spierer case to #FindLauren
Tip 4: #Tweeting not your thing? Close to #Bloomington? Arrange days off, assemble a team and come here!
Tip 5: Consider donating to help fund the search. $5, 10, $25, anything helps: http://www.iuhillel.org/lauren_donate.php
Tip 6: She could be anywhere. People MUST see her. Consider changing ur photo to: http://twitpic.com/5842fw
Tip 7: Pass on reward information, $100k and remind people of the anonymous tip line: (812) 339-4477.
Tip 8: Have u shared Lauren’s pict. w/the people you work with? Print out her poster, show it to all.
Tip 9: Do you have a blog? Blog it. Do you read blogs? Request your favorite bloggers to blog it.
Tip 10: #Facebook your thing? Post Lauren’s poster on your page. Ask others to do the same: http://twitpic.com/5842fw
Tip 11: Post both Lauren’s poster and the truck poster in your area.
Tip 12: Organize a #FindLauren fundraiser.
Tip 13: Ask your area businesses to donate 10% of their proceeds to the search to findlauren.com.
Tip 14: Follow @NewsOnLaurenS for the latest updates.
The Spierer family is also in Indiana, every day since Lauren’s disappearance, searching for their daughter. You can get involved with that, too.
And remember, any tip is helpful and no information is too little. You can call the anonymous tip hotline 24-7 and let the police know any information you might have: 1-800-CRIMETV.
I’ve been following @NewsOnLaurenS for continuous updates, and you should too. Lauren is out there somewhere. People don’t just disappear into thin air. As long as we keep her story alive, she will be found.
This could have happened to anyone, and I truly think that this movement is a step in the right direction, to let the horrible people out there who do this know that we won’t give up hope, and they can’t get away with it anymore.
