Found Deceased TX - Athena Strand, 7, last seen at home, 200 block County Rd 3573, Paradise, 30 Nov 2022

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GuyfromCanada said:
The two had an argument while Strand's dad was not home. They believe she walked out on her own, but neighbors say that doesn't seem right.

"The only time she left was to go to her grandmother's house next door - and that's family," Owens said. "She's not okay with being in the dark. She doesn't like the cold."

"There's some abandoned barns and sheds.. we went through there," said Chasity Allerkamp, who volunteered to help search for Strand. "We searched the woods behind the dad's property, not on the property while they were out there with the hounds, we couldn't find anything out there."

Volunteers in Wise County help search for missing 7-year-old Athena Strand
Click to expand...
If her grandma lived right next door, I'd think she'd have run over there that night, instead of running into the cold , dark, night by herself.
 
otto said:
Why would anyone argue with a 7 year old?
Click to expand...

Since I have a child, here is just one example:
Me: (After a 5-minute warning) "It's time to turn off the T.V. now"
Child: "No! In a minute!"
Me: "It's been on for an hour. Time to turn it off." Walking over to switch it off... Child starts screaming and trying to turn it back on, etc. I make the mistake of telling child they've lost T.V. for the next day. Child gets even more upset. Child is the type who goes into "fight-or-flight" when upset and he might try immediately or later to leave the house.

Was the situation handled perfectly? No.
Does it happen? Yes. Do the parents wish they had known how to do better and that this drama hadn't happened? Definitely yes.

I really stick by this opinion. May the first perfect parent here cast the first stone.
 
Chelly said:
From the link below:
The little girl hasn't been found as of about 1 p.m. Thursday. The sheriff tells WFAA that she possibly left after an argument with her parents.

www.kens5.com

AMBER Alert issued for missing North Texas girl in Wise County

Police said the mother of 7-year-old Athena had been looking for her since before 6 p.m. She was last seen around County Road 3573 in Paradise.
www.kens5.com www.kens5.com
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MOO, <modsnip: not victim friendly>

Please excuse me if this has already been answered. I’m 9 pages behind.

Edit to add: I see everything more clearly now that I’m 4 pages in.
 
Last edited by a moderator:
This doesn't sit well with me at all. I've been in LE for almost 7 years and dealt with countless missing people cases. The fact that there was a 1 hour delay in reporting this to police is unusual.

This is a 7yr old child who is, by definition, not streetwise, unable to look after herself and is at high risk of coming to serious harm. With children that young you generally find the parents wait 10-15 minutes at most before ringing police, and even then they're usually hysterical and panicking.

Secondly, an hour is an extremely long time to be looking for a young child. They very rarely go far...usually to a friend's address or a family member's house. Once you've checked those places and the immediate vicinity in and around the house then surely you contact police immediately!

I'm not saying the family are involved - we don't have all the information to hand. But given the delay in reporting I think I'd be looking extremely closely at the family...


MOO
 
Proudnanny said:
Really what 7 year old has an argument with parents and runaways I just can't do this any more poor sweet girl
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I think we might be thinking of an "argument" from an adult stand point. My kids "argue" with me all the time. Usually related to things they don't want to do like, clean their room or pick up their toys. Time to turn off electronics! NOOOOO JUST LET ME FINISH THISSSSSSS! Sometimes that's the end of it and sometimes they melt down over not getting their way. But it's nothing over the top or out of the ordinary for kids their age. I think that might be why the Sheriff said it was nothing unusual. Kids can have BIG feelings and many times don't have the tools to navigate those feelings. Maybe stepmom and Athena argued a lot about things because living with dad was very different from living with mom. Maybe the rules were completely different and she was having trouble navigating that. Maybe she was acting out because she didn't want to be there. Lots of possibilities.
 
Proudnanny said:
Really what 7 year old has an argument with parents and runaways I just can't do this any more poor sweet girl
Click to expand...
A lot.
Children with emotional issues, learning difficulties, trauma, mental health issues. There's so many variations to the dynamics between child and parent, not everything functions perfectly for everyone. It's not rare. It's just that people who experience this as parents, usually don't speak about it to other parents. Not many people want to openly discuss something like this, because they usually fear being judged and side eyed by people who have no understanding of what having a difficult situation like that is really like.
There may well be an issue with the step-mom, but it's also very believable that the child could have thrown a tantrum, argued and ran away. I also would put no stock in what the bio-mom or bio-mom's family would have to say in regards to what the child would or wouldn't do, simply because of the awkward dynamics between biological father, step-mom and bio-mom.
 
On Thursday night, Strand's mom Maitlyn Gandy took to social media to thank those who've helped try to find her daughter.
She wrote in part:

"Athena is still missing and we are now over the 24 hour point. Thank you to my wonderful family and the large support from the Wise County community. We are continuing our search. I ask that everyone pray.. pray some more, continue to pray, and never stop praying. I cannot live without my baby and I need her brought home safely to me. Athena didn't walk away or disappear on her own. I will not give up or stop until I have Athena back. I feel like there is a hole in my heart and half of my soul is missing. An amber alert was issued earlier today. Please do not give up on my baby."
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However, the Wise County Office of Emergency Management has since stated that they "will not be utilizing volunteers to assist with the search," for Strand.

www.cbsnews.com

Police focus on car in search for missing 7-year-old Athena Strand

Police searching for Strand taped off a car on CR 4599 at TX 114 in Boyd, about seven miles from her home.
www.cbsnews.com www.cbsnews.com
 
In an update Thursday evening, the Wise County Sheriff's Office said that both the stepmother and father are cooperating with authorities in the case.

According to officials, the AMBER Alert was issued to broadcast that Athena was missing or possibly abducted to as many people as possible.

The reason why it wasn't done sooner was because the family told the sheriff that Athena had done this before, so the sheriff's office felt that they would have found the child eventually in the night.

AMBER Alert issued for missing North Texas girl in Wise County
 
The best way to assist with finding Athena is to share and respect the information posted by official sources only.
Any request for volunteers or supplies will be posted on
Wise County Office of Emergency Management https://www.facebook.com/wisecountyoem with instructions on where to check in or what supplies are needed.
Volunteers will not be checked in at the scene.
Please stay clear of the area unless there is an official request.

 
Posted 9 hours ago-


To ensure the message is clear and there is no confusion… there has not been a request for volunteers to arrive at 9am. At this time, we will not be utilizing volunteers to assist with the search.

Arriving on scene at a large scale incident without being requested to a) offer to help or b) bring unrequested supplies, takes time and resources away from the task at hand.

The best way to assist with finding Athena is to share and respect the information posted by official sources only.

Any request for volunteers or supplies will be posted here with instructions on where to check in or what supplies are needed.

There are currently no official request for volunteers or supplies. Volunteers will not be checked in at the scene. Please stay clear of the area unless there is an official request.

 
I may have missed it but I had wondered the radius searched so far. This story says 5 mile radius searched. The Sheriff is also quoted as saying 50 acres searched.

Reporter says Athena had planned to go to a Christmas event with her Aunt in Oklahoma this weekend.

www.fox4news.com

AMBER Alert issued for 7-year-old Wise County girl

An AMBER Alert was issued Thursday afternoon for 7-year-old Athena Strand, even though the sheriff doesn’t have evidence to indicate that she was abducted.
www.fox4news.com www.fox4news.com
 
ChatteringBirds said:
Since I have a child, here is just one example:
Me: (After a 5-minute warning) "It's time to turn off the T.V. now"
Child: "No! In a minute!"
Me: "It's been on for an hour. Time to turn it off." Walking over to switch it off... Child starts screaming and trying to turn it back on, etc. I make the mistake of telling child they've lost T.V. for the next day. Child gets even more upset. Child is the type who goes into "fight-or-flight" when upset and he might try immediately or later to leave the house.

Was the situation handled perfectly? No.
Does it happen? Yes. Do the parents wish they had known how to do better and that this drama hadn't happened? Definitely yes.

I really stick by this opinion. May the first perfect parent here cast the first stone.
Click to expand...
I’m not wanting to think anything happened by the family in this case. I remember “running away” a few times in Athena’s age because I didn’t feel like I was being heard or I didn’t like what my mom had to say. We argued to the extent that I probably said things like “I hate you”, “you’re not nice” or “you’re the worst mom ever”. I usually packed a bag and walked away, and my mom would be on the phone within minutes to the area neighbors to keep an eye out. The phone chain worked well in those times. Usually a neighbor would call and say I was in their treehouse, and my mom would come get me. In this rural an area I don’t see the phone chain but I hope all the sheds and forts have been well searched. I’m hoping for a miracle for Athena. Come out, sweetie, so we know you’re safe. ❤️
 
youngsleuther said:
Preparing for the worst and hoping for the best.
The family said that Athena had earlier too ran away from home. Maybe she ran again in search of her dad because it was said that he wasn't home at that time?
A fight with step mom and dad not being at home at that moment seems a little sketchy.
JMO
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The News guy deleted that tweet about her doing this more than once. So I don't know if that still stands. The Aunt has said this was not like her. The stories for this case are all over depending on who's interview you watch or what MSM you read. Which I cannot believe can be helping in any way. This sucks.
 
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