CA CA - Farren Stanberry, 18, San Francisco, 24 Apr 1980

[summergirl1]

It seems like wherever his work place was never looked into at the time or later ( perhaps it didn't exist by then). His roommates ( seems to be multiple) might have been telling the truth or they may not have about him leaving for work. I wonder if there was more than one, whether that person or persons is still alive. The manager may have been somewhat right that he was visiting a gay man there, but he was obviously living there too, with a group of young men, who he may have come to know well or may not have. His aunt and uncle being confused about what year or month (after June 1980 as the aunt's letter claimed, etc) he vanished I'm sure did not help their search.

 

[Satch]

Wow that's amazing! That ice cream parlour job would be spot on! Can you find any other adverts from this time for companies owned by the Marriott Corporation? Say May 4th to early June. I know they had a variety of holdings, not just hotels.
Is access to these archives free or have you a paid membership? I'd love to know the site please?
Tom Damewood might be worth a further investigation too.

Yes!

I just want to add that when I was growing up Farrell's Ice Cream Parlors were very well-known in the States! I used to go to one in my area and this was in the late 70s and 80's. How far was that ice cream place from the National Hotel? Big Boy was a hamburger restaurant that was very popular, and I also had one near my area.

Satch

 

[Bit of hope]

I'm leaning towards Farren was harmed or if he lived through 1980, he maybe died of Aids later on. I don't believe he is an UID entered in Namus at this point. At least not in SF. Personally I don't believe every found UID, especially the older cases, are entered in Namus. He might have been buried N.N. in a mass grave or cremated. I'm not sure about the policy in SF, but in Los Angeles this was customary.

It were hard times for the gay community in those days. https://www.ktvu.com/news/cleve-jones-reflects-on-life-in-san-francisco-during-the-1980s-aids-crisis

SAN FRANCISO (KTVU) - The AIDS crisis swept through United States in the early 1980s. But the epicenter of that deadly epidemic was San Francisco.

Cleve Jones was there at the beginning when a mysterious and merciless virus began ripping through the heart of San Francisco's gay community.

"It was a time of great sorrow and overwhelming terror. It was not unusual to see people in this neighborhood collapse and die in the street," said Jones who became an AIDS activist.

<snipped>

UC San Francisco oncologist Paul Volberding is one of the pioneers of AIDS research.
He saw his first AIDS patient in 1981.

<snipped>

The disease would eventually kill 20,000 people in San Francisco alone. Most of them were gay men. It was commonly spread through sexual contact.

<snipped>

With AIDS came fear. Straight people wondered about sitting on buses next to a gay person. 'What if he sneezes?'

This is what happened when an a person with AIDS once came to San Francisco TV station for an interview: "The sound guy wouldn't mic the patient because he was concerned about coming too close to an AIDS patient," said Volberding.

AIDS also brought out homophobia.

"There were bumper stickers that said AIDS is killing all the right people," said Jones.

etc.

 

[Ciriii57]

I'm leaning towards Farren was harmed or if he lived through 1980, he maybe died of Aids later on. I don't believe he is an UID entered in Namus at this point. At least not in SF. Personally I don't believe every found UID, especially the older cases, are entered in Namus. He might have been buried N.N. in a mass grave or cremated. I'm not sure about the policy in SF, but in Los Angeles this was customary.

It were hard times for the gay community in those days. Cleve Jones reflects on life in San Francisco during the 1980s AIDS crisis

SAN FRANCISO (KTVU) - The AIDS crisis swept through United States in the early 1980s. But the epicenter of that deadly epidemic was San Francisco.

Cleve Jones was there at the beginning when a mysterious and merciless virus began ripping through the heart of San Francisco's gay community.

"It was a time of great sorrow and overwhelming terror. It was not unusual to see people in this neighborhood collapse and die in the street," said Jones who became an AIDS activist.

<snipped>

UC San Francisco oncologist Paul Volberding is one of the pioneers of AIDS research.
He saw his first AIDS patient in 1981.

<snipped>

The disease would eventually kill 20,000 people in San Francisco alone. Most of them were gay men. It was commonly spread through sexual contact.

<snipped>

With AIDS came fear. Straight people wondered about sitting on buses next to a gay person. 'What if he sneezes?'

This is what happened when an a person with AIDS once came to San Francisco TV station for an interview: "The sound guy wouldn't mic the patient because he was concerned about coming too close to an AIDS patient," said Volberding.

AIDS also brought out homophobia.

"There were bumper stickers that said AIDS is killing all the right people," said Jones.

etc.

Try to keep in mind that the AIDS epidemic didn't begin until June 1980. When Farren disappeared he, and the majoirity of the world, will have never heard of AIDS. IF Farren heard about it at all he will have read news articles about a spate of homeless drug users dying from pneumonia. I think Farren was probably dead before any of this.

 

[Ciriii57]

Hi everyone, quick update. Sgt Rand has said <modsnip>
I also asked him if Farren's social security was ever checked so we could prove the Marriott property was actually him, and if there was a way to check that and I also asked if his posessions were ever retrieved by the family and if he had his wallet on him etc.

 

[Ciriii57]

An In-Flite I found was located about 15 miles from the National Hotel. The trouble with the others is that most of the classified ads just say help wanted and list a phone number without a company name or address. I searched through one issue and there were no specific advertisements for any of the companies owned by Marriott. As the ads for some reason aren't all transcribed, I don't know how worth it it would be to browse through each page of every issue.

This might be weird, but I searched for the phone number of the National Hotel that was posted in an ad previously in this thread and found an ad from a resident there and I think I found him still living. The ad was posted in December 1980, so unsure if he would have been there in April-June. Maybe the detective can look him up and contact him if needed.

I didn't find any more unidentified bodies that seemed to match.

Good Work neverthless @Mfleish I can understand why some of the ads wouldn't be transcribed. Could you happen to let me know the actual location of that In-Flite please?

<modsnip>
What was he actually advertising btw?
And did you hear back from the SF Medical examiner?

 

[Mfleish]

Could you happen to let me know the actual location of that In-Flite please?

The In-Flite was located at 370 Adrian Rd Millbrae, CA.
<modsnip> I haven't heard back from the ME yet.

I also asked him if Farren's social security was ever checked so we could prove the Marriott property was actually him, and if there was a way to check that and I also asked if his posessions were ever retrieved by the family and if he had his wallet on him etc.

That would be great to find out!

I appreciate all the teamwork we have going on to find Farren.

 

[Ciriii57]

So was the Marriott the first job or the second?

Hey Odyssey! Good thoughts. IF that unclaimed Marriott paycheck was Farren's then I believe that it had to be the second job for these reasons:
Farren lost job no.1 and called home asking for money; suggesting he needed cash. If job no.1 was the Marriott then there's no way he would have left $98 uncollected. He would need it while he found another job and worked a week before getting paid.
So this paycheck must be from the second job. Of which he must have done at least a week's work.

Although I think it would be great to learn where Farren worked on the day he disappeared and hopefully Sgt Rand can help with that, in all honesty we have absolutely no idea whether that F. Stanberry is our Farren. It is just an assumption (although one with a high probability of being him and that I personally believe to be him based on the facts).
All we know for certain now is that Farren definitely got another job and disappeared either en route, at work, or returning home. It would be amazing to know where he was working and who with but without some breakthrough I don't know how we will get to know. I honestly do think it is his, but I need to keep in mind that it's not proven.
How common was working "off the books"? My guess is; very.

My last thought (for now, anyway) is that if you were the grandmother and called the hotel and the manager told you he left for work and never returned, leaving his belongings behind, would your next question be "Oh, where does he work? Let me call there to see if he ever showed up." I'm not in any way criticizing his grandmother and maybe she did ask that, but it just never got relayed to anyone else. It just seems odd that we don't know this.

I have a slightly different take/recollection of events (I could be wrong) but as I understand it:

• Farren's grandma called the hotel (probably June 15th or 16th) and was told by the manager that he had "left all his posessions and an unpaid bill". No mention of a job or leaving for work. She then immediately reported him missing.
• The guys he was sharing a room with were contacted (I get the impression this was by LE contacting the hotel once a missing persons report had been filed) and said "he left for work and never came back".
• Then nothing...until 10 years later the manager says he was visiting a gay man.

I don't think anyone mentioned that he had left to work directly to the grandma.

I agree that it is odd that he didn't call to say he had a new job, but I guess we can't really comment on another family's communications; he probably planned to tell them in his next call or maybe it wasn't really "news" -if he had already been travelling around the East in the previous months I assume he had to pick up some temporary jobs to support himself. Would I be right in assuming that if he never graduated high school his choice of jobs would be severely restricted to low paid work (manual labour, waitering..this sort if thing)??

 

[Ciriii57]

The In-Flite was located at 370 Adrian Rd Millbrae, CA.


<modsnip>

I haven't heard back from the ME yet.


That would be great to find out!

I appreciate all the teamwork we have going on to find Farren.

<modsnip>

That In-Flite was pretty close yeah. I don't know how public transport links would have been but if he was geting a ride from a colleague it was only a 30 min drive. And I imagine it was the kind of low-skilled labour that he probably would be limited to doing. It's a possibility, especially if he was indeed getting a ride there!

Keep us posted

 

[Ciriii57]

Regarding entering cases onto Namus. So there is no law in California requiring UIDs to be entered into Namus and it is quite probable that some older cases haven't been. In this case it would be necessary to contact the medical examiners of each city/county directly and see if they have a record of a UID with broken writs/appendix scar that matches Farren's description.

 

[Satch]

-if he had already been travelling around the East

Do we know if Farren on his travels went to the East Coast, or started out trafveling the West Coast, with San Francisco his final destination? I would think that Sergent Rand might be able to clear that up for us.

Satch

 

[Ciriii57]

Do we know if Farren on his travels went to the East Coast, or started out trafveling the West Coast, with San Francisco his final destination? I would think that Sergent Rand might be able to clear that up for us.

Satch

From what he said I gathered yes, he had been travelling the East coast (or somewhere other than SF). Then he returned home before travelling directly to San Francisco. (either way, whether he was always in SF or not, he would still have had to support himself by working I think).

 

[Satch]

From what he said I gathered yes, he had been travelling the East coast (or somewhere other than SF). Then he returned home before travelling directly to San Francisco. (either way, whether he was always in SF or not, he would still have had to support himself by working I think).

That is great to know!

That tells me that Farren was being honest and direct about "Seeing the World." After August of 1979, he might have gone to big cities like New York on the East Coast and actually boarded a Greyhound Bus to do that. He also could have come home to visit on holidays like Thanksgiving and/or Christmas of 1979, after getting money and personals, continued his journey on the West Coast.

I now think that Farren's Aunt and Grandmother took him to the campsite after one of his home visits, sometime between January - early March of 1980. These dates are no becoming so much clearer! (If not exact, they are pretty close.) We now have a much better idea of Farren's activities! That is AWESOME that Sergent Rand can put you in touch with Farren's Aunt and Uncle! I am thrilled beyond words with knowing all of the new information!

The only deep sorrow is the strong vibe, now more than ever, that Farren met up with tragedy.

Satch

 

[John/Jane Doe]

@Caring1 Hey could you post the current list of NamUs exclusions for Farren Stanberry? I would greatly appreciate it.

 

[Caring1]

@Caring1 Hey could you post the current list of NamUs exclusions for Farren Stanberry? I would greatly appreciate it.

34 Unidentified Person Exclusions

 

[Interested_But_Confused]

If it's true that Farren had lost his job, but also that he was going to work on the day he disappeared, is it possible he'd been given a few days' notice? Instead of being fired on the spot and told not to come to work tomorrow, what if he'd been told he would have a job until the end of the week, or the end of the month? The job he had lost, and the job he was going to on the day he disappeared, could at least theoretically still be the same job.

 

[Bit of hope]

Try to keep in mind that the AIDS epidemic didn't begin until June 1980. When Farren disappeared he, and the majoirity of the world, will have never heard of AIDS. IF Farren heard about it at all he will have read news articles about a spate of homeless drug users dying from pneumonia. I think Farren was probably dead before any of this.

Let me first say: great work.
I agree with your last sentence. My first words were "I'm leaning towards he was harmed". My point was that he may have been a victim of a hate-crime, but he might as well had an accident of some sort. There is still the option of him leaving the city. Against that is him leaving his possessions behind (would love to know what exactly. He might have chosen to travel light and took some essentials with him) and probably telling his roommates he was going to work. I hope there is a way to find out where he worked and trace back what might have happened. If he passed in 1980 shortly after the missing date either his body is concealed/still not found/lost or his body/remains where found somewhere, then or later, not identified and buried or cremated. Maybe you could ask the detective if there are unidentified remains found that are not entered in Namus at all (maybe there is a backlog in entering old cases), or are in Namus without access for the general public to see.

 

[Ciriii57]

If it's true that Farren had lost his job, but also that he was going to work on the day he disappeared, is it possible he'd been given a few days' notice? Instead of being fired on the spot and told not to come to work tomorrow, what if he'd been told he would have a job until the end of the week, or the end of the month? The job he had lost, and the job he was going to on the day he disappeared, could at least theoretically still be the same job.

Hmmm Its a possibility i suppose I hadn't considered that but I'm not sure.
He told his gran he'd lost his job on a Sunday, so he'd probably worked out the week already. The end of the month was 4 days away so that would mean he vanished in those 4 days. Which is certainly a possibility.
I'm not sure if the possible Marriott paycheck would be affected by this theory? I feel that with this theory since we know it was for about a week's work it would have to be the previous week ending 24th April. So since he needed money and never collected it, it would place his disappearance very very soon after the phonecall, like the 27th. But why not collect it on the Saturday or Sunday?
Am I making any sense at all! Lol I'm not actually sure!

Its not known that he was sacked at all. I've always preferred to think he was just doing temporary work off the books, but that's only my opinion.

I dunno, I'm personally still drawn to the idea of him having gotten another job. I think he had already lost his job and stopped working when he spoke to his Grandma but found another and vanished sometime in later May of early June. Partly I think this because his stuff was still at the hotel which I take to mean he hadn't been gone for as long as 6 weeks.

 

[Satch]

Hmmm Its a possibility i suppose I hadn't considered that but I'm not sure.
He told his gran he'd lost his job on a Sunday, so he'd probably worked out the week already. The end of the month was 4 days away so that would mean he vanished in those 4 days. Which is certainly a possibility.
I'm not sure if the possible Marriott paycheck would be affected by this theory? I feel that with this theory since we know it was for about a week's work it would have to be the previous week ending 24th April. So since he needed money and never collected it, it would place his disappearance very very soon after the phonecall, like the 27th. But why not collect it on the Saturday or Sunday?
Am I making any sense at all! Lol I'm not actually sure!

Its not known that he was sacked at all. I've always preferred to think he was just doing temporary work off the books, but that's only my opinion.

I dunno, I'm personally still drawn to the idea of him having gotten another job. I think he had already lost his job and stopped working when he spoke to his Grandma but found another and vanished sometime in later May of early June. Partly I think this because his stuff was still at the hotel which I take to mean he hadn't been gone for as long as 6 weeks.

Great post!

I think that most banks in the US were not open on Sunday and also limited Saturday hours. I am also drawn to him getting another job and something bad happening to him on the way to work, at work, or going someplace in relation to work. It would be great if we could find the exact date that he left the hotel and told his roommates that he was going to work, but never came back. The earliest that this happened was probably early May, and the latest that this happened, was probably early June. I think @Ciriii57's theory of mid May as a likelihood of when this happened is a great hypothesis!

When Farren called his Mother and Grandmother on April 26, 1980 I believe he had nothing, lost his first job, and was living hand to mouth. I mean, "A room and a bath for a buck and a half" was probably a financial strain. He had nothing, and when he told his Grandmother, "I love you." I originally took that as a suicide cry for help.

However, off the basis of his roommates who said Farren "left for work and never came back." that leads me to him getting another job, not him committing suicide. It's possible that they lied, if Farren swore them to secrecy about something, but I doubt that. Back than in San Francisco, you could be a temporary help "errand boy." Cook, street vendor, food prep, dishwasher, bus boy(At the Marriott?) It is possible that Farren never got a high school diploma. But back in those days, companies would hire temps to do very basic things.

OR:

Farren being vulnerable and with not a lot of street smarts was lured into something horrible, with false promises and false trust on that "second job." Tragically, Farren would fit the profile of someone luring an unsuspecting victim to a horrible place. Someone looking for a "Fashion model." "Photography assistant." And perhaps Farren had the body and physique that they were looking for, to (put it mildly) "Do bad things" to him. Farren could have been "set up" and trapped where once he started, he could not escape. This could tie in with a hate crime. There's a part of me that senses that "Second Job" lead to an evil place. What the advertised job could have been a total "come on" compared to what was actually taking place?

The above scenario before the "Or" is horrifying, but we have to be realistic that this could have happened. Farren leaving his belongings and money behind is a red flag to me. He might have forgotten about the money. But I don't think he did.

Satch

 

[Odyssey]

If it's true that Farren had lost his job, but also that he was going to work on the day he disappeared, is it possible he'd been given a few days' notice? Instead of being fired on the spot and told not to come to work tomorrow, what if he'd been told he would have a job until the end of the week, or the end of the month? The job he had lost, and the job he was going to on the day he disappeared, could at least theoretically still be the same job.

Another possibility is that he left the hotel to go to work, arrives at work only to be terminated. Then he goes to a pay phone and calls his grandmother,/mother telling them he lost his job. He never makes it back to the hotel.

Just another scenario where there would only be one job.

This scenario would certainly simplify things as we would know the date he went missing.