NJ NJ - Celina Mays, 12, pregnant, Willingboro, 16 Dec 1996

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Sue Doe Nimm said:
Celina is the one I can't get out of my mind. I'd love to know what happened to her. It sounds as if this little gal had a rough life from this news article:

http://articles.philly.com/1997-01-10/news/25561226_1_neighbors-shy-girl-mother

Suddenly, Celina was thrust into the communal world of the Gospel of Christ Church family, where she shared a house with at least 15 other relatives, where she was homeschooled with the congregation's other children, where every aspect of her life seemed entwined with the church.

Suddenly, the physical and emotional parameters of her young life seemed confined to the red brick building on Washington Street in Mount Holly. The site, which once housed Sacred Heart Catholic Church, is now the hub of the church's activities.

The congregation's children are schooled there. Prayer services are conducted there. And several church families live there.

``They say Celina had no contact with the outside world, that sounds absolutely right to me,'' said Mayo Goldman, a former church member who left the congregation five years ago. ``They want to shut you off from outside communication.''

Sounds like a very cult-like atmosphere to me. I hope she found a sympathizer who helped her escape and is living happily somewhere.
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She became pregnant at 11 years old! It's said she had no contact with the outside world which leads me to believe that someone within that church is responsible for getting her pregnant and I bet they have a good idea who it was.

This church does sound cult like. I wonder what plans they had for her baby once it was born? Were they angry at her for 'disobeying' their rules?

I think she fled in fear maybe to some sort of shelter that helped her get away. There is no way she ran away without help from someone.
 
Are there any shelters that would take her in?

I am wonder if a health care worker slipped her a phone number of a shelter? Celina called and was picked up and taken to a shelter.

I think that would be the best case scenario in a case like this...
 
Gem2626 said:
She became pregnant at 11 years old! It's said she had no contact with the outside world which leads me to believe that someone within that church is responsible for getting her pregnant and I bet they have a good idea who it was.

This church does sound cult like. I wonder what plans they had for her baby once it was born? Were they angry at her for 'disobeying' their rules?

I think she fled in fear maybe to some sort of shelter that helped her get away. There is no way she ran away without help from someone.
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The nature of this particular denomination makes me agree with your opinion that whoever got her pregnant was also in that circle. Given how insular the community seems, I don't suspect that she'd have had much of an opportunity to meet a boy who wasn't part of the congregation, much less become pregnant by one.

Her father's words make me suspect that he is circling the wagons to protect someone. When he says she was strong-willed, it's not a complimentary term. I belonged to a Pentecostal church for about a year. Obedience and submission are emphasized and praised, especially in women. Being willful is a sign that you are letting "The Enemy" (Satan) into your life, thoughts and deeds. They'll try and pray it out of you or "correct" your behavior. Meaning you'll have an elder tell you your thoughts, feeling or actions are wrong and that you need to line up with everyone else. This is done under the guise of concern and love for a struggling soul who is under spiritual attack. It isn't particularly loving.

I've absolutely no doubt in my mind that Celina's pregnancy was a huge issue there, not only because of her age but because of her proximity to the church leaders. Purity of thought and deed is another huge sticking point for this denomination, and having a pregnant 12 year old in the congregation would have been like a big old scarlet letter. I've absolutely no doubt in my mind that her condition was used as a lesson for other young girls there, and that the way it was presented wasn't terrifically sensitive to her feelings.

While Celina may have had a wonderful support system there, my gut tells me she did not. This is my opinion only and speculation on my behalf based upon my experiences with a similar church.
 
KariKae said:
Are there any shelters that would take her in?

I am wonder if a health care worker slipped her a phone number of a shelter? Celina called and was picked up and taken to a shelter.

I think that would be the best case scenario in a case like this...
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It's possible she was taken in at a shelter. While she didn't look like an adult, she could have passed for an older teenager. Checking in at a shelter under an assumed name and different age than her own is entirely feasible.

Given her age at the time of conception (OMG! ELEVEN!), I have to wonder if Social Services was involved. Perhaps a sympathetic case worker provided her with an escape hatch. It's possible that her physician did as well. While she is a minor and normally would have had her information shared with her parent or guardian, if you are a pregnant minor you have different rights to privacy in your health care. So if she shared something with her obstetrician, she would have had a patient-doctor privilege minors typically don't get.

I really hope she ran like the wind and is living safely and happily somewhere. It truly is the best case scenario in this sad case.
 
Sue Doe Nimm said:
It's possible she was taken in at a shelter. While she didn't look like an adult, she could have passed for an older teenager. Checking in at a shelter under an assumed name and different age than her own is entirely feasible.

Given her age at the time of conception (OMG! ELEVEN!), I have to wonder if Social Services was involved. Perhaps a sympathetic case worker provided her with an escape hatch. It's possible that her physician did as well. While she is a minor and normally would have had her information shared with her parent or guardian, if you are a pregnant minor you have different rights to privacy in your health care. So if she shared something with her obstetrician, she would have had a patient-doctor privilege minors typically don't get.

I really hope she ran like the wind and is living safely and happily somewhere. It truly is the best case scenario in this sad case.
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I also wish that is the case. Unfortunately, Celina's mother's life insurance policy ($50K) would go a long way to allow her to start a new life. Since it has not been claimed, I suspect Celina is no longer with us.

As others have stated, my guess is she was lured away from home by the pervert/sperm donor. My guess is he was married and knew his world was about to crash around him if it was found out he had impregnated an 11 y/o. He lured Celina away with promises of a wonderful life. ("Let's run away and live in Fiji" or something that would appeal to a 12 y/o). He killed her and disposed of her well. I'm sure it was very well planned.

Poor kid...
 
Does anyone know if this "church" was affiliated with other branches in other states/locations. I had a thought that the church may have moved her in order to avoid LE figuring out who the father may be. I would think that child services would step in when a 12 yr old child delivers a baby and would conduct a test to determine paternity.
 
EmmaliLucia said:
She was pregnant at twelve, she conceived at the age of eleven, and CPS was NOT involved?!
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All I can think of is that CPS is really backed up there.
I lived in the same county but 20 minutes away

rob525 said:
Does anyone know if this "church" was affiliated with other branches in other states/locations. I had a thought that the church may have moved her in order to avoid LE figuring out who the father may be. I would think that child services would step in when a 12 yr old child delivers a baby and would conduct a test to determine paternity.
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Doesn't look like it's affiliated with anything.
Website
 
IMO if I were her and ran away to have a baby at twelve, there would have to had been something terrible going on. After you've raised a child for six years, a third of the time you've been alive, I would assume for me at least, the 50k life insurance policy wasn't worth facing the skeletons in my closet.

My other thought about this is why would she put pillows in the form of her body? This was something I did as a teenager when I would leave at night and plan on being back in the morning. IMO the fact she did this, left her prenatal vitamins, and all person effects behind, she was planning on coming back that night.
 
Sue Doe Nimm said:
Celina is the one I can't get out of my mind. I'd love to know what happened to her. It sounds as if this little gal had a rough life from this news article:

http://articles.philly.com/1997-01-10/news/25561226_1_neighbors-shy-girl-mother

Suddenly, Celina was thrust into the communal world of the Gospel of Christ Church family, where she shared a house with at least 15 other relatives, where she was homeschooled with the congregation's other children, where every aspect of her life seemed entwined with the church.

Suddenly, the physical and emotional parameters of her young life seemed confined to the red brick building on Washington Street in Mount Holly. The site, which once housed Sacred Heart Catholic Church, is now the hub of the church's activities.

The congregation's children are schooled there. Prayer services are conducted there. And several church families live there.

``They say Celina had no contact with the outside world, that sounds absolutely right to me,'' said Mayo Goldman, a former church member who left the congregation five years ago. ``They want to shut you off from outside communication.''

Sounds like a very cult-like atmosphere to me. I hope she found a sympathizer who helped her escape and is living happily somewhere.
Click to expand...

What's interesting about the article you linked to is her father was going to provide records to show he had a vasectomy 2 years before. I wonder if LE ever got them.

I feel that whoever fathered the child did something, or that she had complications during delivery and passed away.

Lt. Donna Dimitri said she suspects the 12-year-old is no longer in the South Jersey area. ``There is no evidence that she gave birth in a local hospital,'' she said. ``We believe we would have gotten calls about someone who fits her description.''

Family members said that Celina never disclosed who fathered her child. Crezonzo ``C.J.'' Mays, Celina's father, upset by swirling rumors, told police that he had a vasectomy two years ago. Last night police were waiting for Mays to bring in his medical records.
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KaylaraOwl said:
I found https://identifyus.org/en/cases/10773
And
https://identifyus.org/en/cases/6317

There are no rule outs on either one. Either one of them is an easy distance to cross, but neither mentions a pregnancy.
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The DNA on the 1st one isn't done processing, but the 2nd has a profile. I do not know who holds the DNA in all 3 cases, they would have to be turned into each case worker
Celina Mays - Brenda Galarza - Email - namus@ncmec.org
NamUs UP # 10773 - DNA Tests not complete - Amy Dobbs - Amy.Dobbs@unthsc.edu
NamUs UP # 6317 - DNA Tests complete - Lori Bruski - Lori.Bruski@unthsc.edu
 
still missing: https://www20.state.nj.us/NJSP_Amber/DispatchAction.do?parameter=mp_detail&mp_id=904&type=mp

ShowImage
 
ok. first, there is no way her church family allowed her unsupervised at a skating rink.

second, her baby's father being a 16 year old who did not attend her church sounds coached.

third, shed only been immersed in this church for less than 2 years. she did not grow up around it so she probably didn't submit the way they liked.

but, they were taking her for prenatal care. I would think if it was a church member and "known secret", they would have avoided prenatal care?

either someone slipped her some "escape info" or she was "silenced by someone in her circle. also, I would be interested in knowing whether dad ever proved he'd had a vasectomy.
 
What hospital was Celina going to give birth at? I am curious if she had been to Lordes Hospital?
 
KariKae said:
Are there any shelters that would take her in?

I am wonder if a health care worker slipped her a phone number of a shelter? Celina called and was picked up and taken to a shelter.

I think that would be the best case scenario in a case like this...
Click to expand...

Celina was not happy living within the boundaries of the Gospel of Christ and was pregnant so would have more than likely had contact with a health care worker. Who and where?

The Gospel of Christ church took over the Sacred Heart Which is Catholic. Where did that congregation go?. Sacred Heart had a church in Edmonton when girls were being targeted by an apparent serial offender.IIRC they assisted the venerable and marginalized in the community.

Where else have I heard about Sacred Heart? In any other cases? Wasn't Katelyn Marham at a Sacred Heart Festival prior to her homicide? Probably just a coincidence,
 
Patience said:
Interesting podcast claims that Celina possibly worked at a WaWa store and at another point claims a possible sighting at a WaWa store in Egg Harbour, New Jersey. Egg Harbour, ugh.
https://youtu.be/RWzndW_2q_8
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I think she was either killed or went into labor early and passed. I don't think the Wawa sightings were her.
 
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