NY NY - Sheryl Tillinghast, 17, Wassaic, 24 Sept 1973

NancyDrew1981 said:

How about this uid? https://identifyus.org/en/cases/2607

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"While she was gone, she would write a letter every other week to her sisters," the investigator said. "She was concerned about them. She wanted to know that things were going well for them and that they were being taken care of, and she had concerns that maybe they weren't."

Tillinghast would never visit, however, and by September 1973, her letters to the house stopped as did her employment at the Wassaic State School.

Despite the tumultuous relationship between the two, Tillinghast's mother, Gertrude Belcher, dug into her daughter's mysterious absence, but did not get any answers.

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Crowley said there are suspects, but for Hinckley there is a prime suspect — a man whom her sister became involved with romantically at the Wassaic State School.

He was an older man who had also worked in the laundry facility. His family members were administrators at the school, according to Hinckley.

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She believes that Tillinghast's remains are somewhere around that decaying school. It's a rural area, she said, one with a swamp and pond.

"What was she going through her last few minutes before she died — did she suffer?" Hinckley asked. "I'll never have closure to know that my sister is still out there. You want to know what happened. In order to put this to rest, you need to know what happened to your loved one. Even if the truth of what happened is painful, you still need to know."

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For Hinckley, who grew up with Tillinghast and their six other siblings in a single-wide trailer in the town of Phelps, this time of year is the most difficult to deal with regarding the disappearance. On Saturday, Tillinghast would turn 60 years old.

“The entire month I can’t think of much else,” Hinckley said.

Hinckley, who has since relocated to Sanford, Florida, has been looking for answers regarding her sister’s disappearance for years, but little has turned up.

“The older I get, the more I see that time is of the essence,” Hinckley said. “I would like some answers to put this to rest.”

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The more days that pass without answers, the more passionate Hinckley becomes about finding answers.

“Having a loved on missing can almost consume your life,” Hinckley said. “Thinking of what may have happened to them, where they are, did they suffer. These are the thoughts I have. … I think a lot of the time it’s families who are the driving force that keeps these cases alive.”

With mystery still shrouding the case, Hinckley, who has four children of her own, plans to have a prayer of remembrance today.

“Being a believer, I know God knows the truth,” Hinckley said. “He knows where she is. I pray everyday that He will lead the investigators to her and the truth.”

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Laeona said:

4 bodies found in barrels in Bear Brook State Park in Allenstown, NH; one woman, 3 children, 2 of whom are related to the woman
http://www.doenetwork.org/cases/799ufnh.html

Sheryl resembles the composite for the woman found in Allenstown, as does Sheryl's niece. Sheryl's sister bears a resemblance with the youngest child, and the oldest child has top front teeth with a gap.

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folieadeuxnola said:

A fantastic find.. but both DNA's are in NAMUS wouldn't they have crossed matched ?

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Laeona said:

If DNA is entered for someone who went missing, does that mean it is the missing person's DNA, or will they also use a family member's DNA (for comparison, like a mother or sister)? Where do they get DNA from a person that wasn't reported missing until 25 years after they disappeared?

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tarabull said:

Sheryl Ann Tillinghast’s Case Still Open 44 Years Later
September 24, 2017

https://www.nbcnews.com/feature/col...hast-s-case-still-open-44-years-later-n803771

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