Remembering Sheila and Katherine

It is hard to believe that on Friday, March 25, 2016,
it will mark 41 years since the disappearance of Sheila and Katherine Lyon.

I truly hope that with the advancements in technology since 1975,
such as DNA testing and other things--that this case will be unraveled and if there are any other connections to this case, that they too will be solved.

I know it is hard to believe the girls have been missing my whole life plus another ten years. I feel so sad for the Lyon family having to deal with the extreme loss and uncertainty for a horrendous amount of time. 41 years might have passed but people still care about Sheila and Katherine. We want to know what happened and who is responsible so they can be held accountable.
 
[h=2]Below is a post from a long closed thread in this topic. In it, I quoted portions of a Washington Star article which appeared 42 years ago today. It was in response to another member's question about what the girls were like personally.

-------------------------------------

A peek into the girls' personalities...[/h]

I can only draw conclusions about the girls' personalities from what I have read about them. Somewhere back in the origional thread there is a post by someone who knew them personally and she speaks of what they were like.

I think that the girls might have been a bit bolder around a stranger or someone they had only met casually if both were together, rather than one or the other walking home alone. They may have felt safer together. While Sheila may have been more reserved, and Kate more outgoing, Sheila may have been the one to lead the way as seen in one statement or Mrs. Biosca below.

I remember reading a quote from the girls' mother once in which she stated that the girls were pretty smart, and knew not to talk to strangers, but that she could imagine them being tricked into a vehicle.

She mentioned a scenario in which maybe a person were to drive up and say something like "There has been an accident, your Mom asked me to drive you to the hospital."

Below are some quotes that I have snipped from an article published in the Washington Star on 6 April 1975. The reporter made her own observations and also interviewed Mary Lyon, the girls' mother in writing the article. I posted it in its entierty in the News Reports and Articles thread a while back.

Perhaps you can draw some conclusions concerning the girls' personalities from these comments:

---------------------------
Sheila and Kate went to Wheaton Plaza by themselves. First, though, they went upstairs to the pale yellow bedroom they share with their stuffed animals and dressed.

Sheila put on a navy blue sweatshirt and wheat colored jeans that she called her "Cheap jeans" and tennis shoes.

Kate had on Wrangler blue jeans, a bright gold turtleneck, a red knit jacket and brown shoes.

Mrs. Lyon told the girls she thought 3 o'clock would be "a good time" to be home.

...It was into this busy, teeming shopping scene that the two Lyon sisters walked. Two blond haired girls: Kate, the youngest, "sort of the silly one - the outgoing one" as some friends affectionately put it, and Sheila, the oldest, who they said is "quiet - she would talk when you talked to her."

Sheila is the cook, the honor roll student at Newport Junior High, the artist, the bowler, a young girl just starting to take outside babysitting jobs - with a secret ambition to be a cheerleader.

Kate likes to garden, play volleyball, roller skate, read books - and run. "She is really a fast runner - like a bullet," one friend said. And Kate is especially fond of her youngest brother, Joe. She often would dress him and walk him every day to their school, Oakland Terrace elementary.

Sheila's school is Newport Junior High, to which she rides a bus.

Sheila's and Kate's faces are not unfamiliar at Wheaton Plaza. The girls like candy and frequently browse through the shops, especially to look at clothes.

...Mrs. Biosca said one of the girls had stepped in front of her to look at a woman's wallet on display. "The one with the glasses (Sheila) was walking with the other one behind her, and had said, 'Oh, excuse me' to me. She was looking for a wallet, and I heard her say something to her sister like, 'Look at this. Isn't this nice?'"

...In the girls bedroom with the dainty vanity and the pink flowered vanity skirt and the ruffled white curtains. A poster of rock star John Denver hangs over Sheila's bed -- over Kate's one of Loggins and Messina.

...Sheila kept her money in a metal tea can. Jay counted the money in it and there was $17 and some odd cents.

"We go to Myrtle Beach every year," Mrs. Lyon said. "And we encourage the children to save their money for that. I remember Sheila said the day before, 'Hey Mom, I have $20 already.'"

"Kate had some money but she didn't have near what Sheila did."

...Mary Lyon hurriedly straightened the pink blanket on Kate's bed ...The photographer snaps a few pictures of the stuffed animals piled high on Sheila's pink sheets and blue flowered blanket. He does the same for Kate's.

... Mrs. Lyon stands over by the bookcse in a corner of the room pointing out Kate's Bobbsey Twins books. "Kate likes to read," said her mother. " She likes very sad, sentimental stories about orphans and poor little girls. She takes after me that way."

It's April 6 and the wait is still on. Mrs. Lyon has changed her mind about a lot of things. "When they come home, Kate can get her ears pierced. And Sheila can wear eye shadow."

-----------------------
I recall another similar article which stated that Sheila was very good at her school subjects and had mostly A's, while Kate was not quite as studious.​
 
The only way anyone would really know anything about their personalities would be to have met them, or to have known them personally. Looking at general traits that would have made them vulnerable is a different story, though.
 
A poster of rock star John Denver hangs over Sheila's bed

*shudders* John Denver...

John Denver was a quite popular entertainer back in 1975. He was easily recognized by his haircut, gold rimmed glasses, and flower print shirts with wide collars.

His music was a combination of Folk, Pop, and Country but usually featured on Pop type music radio stations.

He played a mean 12 string accoustic guitar.

John was also a private pilot who died in the crash of an experimental aircraft that he owned.
 
I'm too young for Denver's heyday. I grew up with the potshots taken at him by comedy shows.
 
th


Missing 44 years this month.
 
This month marks the 45 year anniversary of the disappearance of Sheila and Katherine Lyon.

Although investigators were quick to declare the case closed with the conviction of Welch, it should be noted that the girls' bodies have never been found, and others who were probably involved have never been identified.
 
[h=2]Below is a post from a long closed thread in this topic. In it, I quoted portions of a Washington Star article which appeared 42 years ago today. It was in response to another member's question about what the girls were like personally.

-------------------------------------

A peek into the girls' personalities...[/h]
I can only draw conclusions about the girls' personalities from what I have read about them. Somewhere back in the origional thread there is a post by someone who knew them personally and she speaks of what they were like.

I think that the girls might have been a bit bolder around a stranger or someone they had only met casually if both were together, rather than one or the other walking home alone. They may have felt safer together. While Sheila may have been more reserved, and Kate more outgoing, Sheila may have been the one to lead the way as seen in one statement or Mrs. Biosca below.

I remember reading a quote from the girls' mother once in which she stated that the girls were pretty smart, and knew not to talk to strangers, but that she could imagine them being tricked into a vehicle.

She mentioned a scenario in which maybe a person were to drive up and say something like "There has been an accident, your Mom asked me to drive you to the hospital."

Below are some quotes that I have snipped from an article published in the Washington Star on 6 April 1975. The reporter made her own observations and also interviewed Mary Lyon, the girls' mother in writing the article. I posted it in its entierty in the News Reports and Articles thread a while back.

Perhaps you can draw some conclusions concerning the girls' personalities from these comments:

---------------------------
Sheila and Kate went to Wheaton Plaza by themselves. First, though, they went upstairs to the pale yellow bedroom they share with their stuffed animals and dressed.

Sheila put on a navy blue sweatshirt and wheat colored jeans that she called her "Cheap jeans" and tennis shoes.

Kate had on Wrangler blue jeans, a bright gold turtleneck, a red knit jacket and brown shoes.

Mrs. Lyon told the girls she thought 3 o'clock would be "a good time" to be home.

...It was into this busy, teeming shopping scene that the two Lyon sisters walked. Two blond haired girls: Kate, the youngest, "sort of the silly one - the outgoing one" as some friends affectionately put it, and Sheila, the oldest, who they said is "quiet - she would talk when you talked to her."

Sheila is the cook, the honor roll student at Newport Junior High, the artist, the bowler, a young girl just starting to take outside babysitting jobs - with a secret ambition to be a cheerleader.

Kate likes to garden, play volleyball, roller skate, read books - and run. "She is really a fast runner - like a bullet," one friend said. And Kate is especially fond of her youngest brother, Joe. She often would dress him and walk him every day to their school, Oakland Terrace elementary.

Sheila's school is Newport Junior High, to which she rides a bus.

Sheila's and Kate's faces are not unfamiliar at Wheaton Plaza. The girls like candy and frequently browse through the shops, especially to look at clothes.

...Mrs. Biosca said one of the girls had stepped in front of her to look at a woman's wallet on display. "The one with the glasses (Sheila) was walking with the other one behind her, and had said, 'Oh, excuse me' to me. She was looking for a wallet, and I heard her say something to her sister like, 'Look at this. Isn't this nice?'"

...In the girls bedroom with the dainty vanity and the pink flowered vanity skirt and the ruffled white curtains. A poster of rock star John Denver hangs over Sheila's bed -- over Kate's one of Loggins and Messina.

...Sheila kept her money in a metal tea can. Jay counted the money in it and there was $17 and some odd cents.

"We go to Myrtle Beach every year," Mrs. Lyon said. "And we encourage the children to save their money for that. I remember Sheila said the day before, 'Hey Mom, I have $20 already.'"

"Kate had some money but she didn't have near what Sheila did."

...Mary Lyon hurriedly straightened the pink blanket on Kate's bed ...The photographer snaps a few pictures of the stuffed animals piled high on Sheila's pink sheets and blue flowered blanket. He does the same for Kate's.

... Mrs. Lyon stands over by the bookcse in a corner of the room pointing out Kate's Bobbsey Twins books. "Kate likes to read," said her mother. " She likes very sad, sentimental stories about orphans and poor little girls. She takes after me that way."

It's April 6 and the wait is still on. Mrs. Lyon has changed her mind about a lot of things. "When they come home, Kate can get her ears pierced. And Sheila can wear eye shadow."

-----------------------
I recall another similar article which stated that Sheila was very good at her school subjects and had mostly A's, while Kate was not quite as studious.​
One of the most difficult things for me to process is a comment made by Lloyd Welch in The Last Stone where he said Sheila led her sister by the hand when they got to his uncle's house. I had to put the book down for a while at that point, and realize that the only way she could even possibly do that is because of LW's depraved lies, that, if he's to be believed, continued throughout that car ride.

Dave Davis is the detective who theorized that a naive young girl of 13, and possibly because she was naive, could have been lured by the possibility of smoking marijuana. That's hard to process, too. But, truth is, I was 14 in March of 1975, and I could completely see my best friend's sister being lured by the possibility, too. She was a straight A student who loved David Bowie; drugs were just something our favorite rock stars did. The allure was there, but, usually, not the opportunity.​
 
We will probably never know exactly how the girls were abducted regardless of anything Lloyd Welch has said or will ever say.

Welch is an absolute liar at all times. Just as he is compelled to inflict pain and death on others, he is also compelled to lie. Even if he were to accidently tell the truth about anything, it would be in a context of lies and deception - and as a liar, he simply cannot be believed.
 
We will probably never know exactly how the girls were abducted regardless of anything Lloyd Welch has said or will ever say.

Welch is an absolute liar at all times. Just as he is compelled to inflict pain and death on others, he is also compelled to lie. Even if he were to accidently tell the truth about anything, it would be in a context of lies and deception - and as a liar, he simply cannot be believed.

That's what Dave Davis (and others said)...you have to look past the story and focus on the details. The story's a lie, but the details aren't. I'm hoping against hope that, just maybe, the documentary will stir someone's conscience enough that, if nothing else, John and Mary Lyon can bring their girls home.
 
Someone brought up the point about the sisters going hand and hand into the basement, i will never believe that. As a adult i would not have willingly went into that basement. The house and basement was shown on the documentary The Last Stone. the house was like 2 houses attached so someone else lived in the other house....im thinking they took a chance walking the girls in because someone could have seen them through the windows...maybe Lees wife ( Lloyds stepmother who lived above). In the Last Stone doc Lloyd kept saying after all his lies that the younger one kate was crying or in distress in the car. That to me tells me something was not right. He also says that Sheila got into the front seat between dicky and lee. Im thinking if i was with my little sister i would have sat right by her not between these strange men i do not know. That hints to me that they were forced.

I don't believe we will ever know the whole story and all the details...but i do believe Lloyd gave some in his lies/stories. I do think they were tricked or forced into the car. If Sheila wanted to go with them to smoke, im thinking she would not have did it with her younger sister...her sister would or could tell on her. And they did not have much time before they were to be home.

Three men (dicky,Lee and Lloyd possibly) would not have had any trouble forcing the girls into the car. Lloyd said they saw the girls go in....on the side of the mall that no one parked. They knew this is where they are going in so they are probably going to come out this way. Someone was in the car waiting and someone was inside watching and following them..LLoyd and maybe someone else. Truly a sad story and it seems that the others that possibly are involved are dead.

Or maybe there were no others?! Maybe Lloyd did it all by himself..hmmm. There were 2 other girls that say they willingly got into the car with him at that mall at one time but they jumped out. If that is true that makes me ask ...why is Lloyd trying to get these girls, 2 girls both times. One would have been easier for him but 2? Seems like he was getting these girls for someone else. Was someone paying him to get young girls. Just leads me back to more than one person. Also when Lloyd brought the duffle bag/bags to virginia....its like someone had called the family down there and told them to have the fire going. I do not believe Lloyd had enough family power to tell them to get a big fire going and they do it, but His Father Lee, Or Uncle Dicky would!
 
Have you read the book, The Last Stone? There are more details (though nothing that would change the outcome). Yes, someone did call down to Virginia beside LW, but I forget who. At the end of the book, each of the detectives gives their own theory as to what they think happened. Dave Davis thinks LW was actually camped out in the woods behind the mall at some point and stole a car to get to his uncle's house (a car was stolen from an adjacent lot that day). I believe he thinks LW could have, with his girlfriend's help, gotten the girls out of the mall, into the woods "to get high" and into the car.

A couple random thoughts about Patty Welch: in both the documentary itself, and the trailer for the documentary, she says, "What happens on the mountain stays on the mountain." But, they're two different takes. Like, the filmmakers had her say it AGAIN with more emphasis? What in the world... And she's on Facebook, with a couple hundred followers. Never seen more inane posts in my life, but nothing about the case. Uncle Dickie's (her dad) picture is on there a number of times.

And, if you're interested, you can find Dick Welch's online obituary, with a bunch of old pictures, including their home. I went through them looking for a pool table. I didn't find one, but I'd have probably freaked out if I did.

Oh, one last thing: I'm thankful law enforcement got to the bottom of this (somewhat). But, that doesn't erase the fact that they did the absolutely worst job they could have back in the day. And, as far as losing THE ONLY possible piece of physical evidence (the tooth), nobody from Virginia deserves a slap on the back for a job well done. Personally, I think someone in Virginia wanted to make sure "what happens on the mountain stays on the mountain."
 
Those beautiful little girls — the epitome of innocence and goodness.

Please rest in peace, dear Sheila and Kate, in God’s protective arms. I hope you are surrounded by the most comforting and loving angels, and have lost all memories of the terror, fear, and pain you faced in your last days.

John & Mary, we will never forget them, your precious babes.
 

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