I was asked to pass this along:
Friday, April 6, 2007
Matthew Grendel's mother Patty spoke this morning with confidence in her voice that must be hard to maintain.
Sitting in for Sue Henry on her daily morning show, I had asked people to call about the missing 20 year-old from the Minooka section of Scranton.
One of Patty's co-workers quickly called to express his support for the Grendel family and volunteer to help do anything he could to increase awareness about the search.
Not long after that call, Patty called to thank people for their prayers, their hard work and their support of her sad cause.
Matthew has been missing since March 10, the afternoon of the Scranton St. Patrick's Day parade, when he last spoke to a friend on his cell phone and said he was headed to a party in the Hill section of the city.
Then he disappeared, seemingly without a trace.
Police, family, friends and concerned citizens scoured the city for days.
But they found no clues.
When University of Scranton students returned to the city after spring break, hope rose that somebody might know something about Matthew.
But no new information materialized.
Now Patty is clinging to her faith and her hope, trying not to speculate because she knows that anything is possible and that anything might have happened.
She said that Matthew came to the family home in Minooka on the morning of the parade, after having spent the night with a fri end. He was in good spirits, she said, and wanted to borrow his Dad's green shirt to wear to the festivities downtown.
Patty said they found him some beads to wear in the spirit of Mardi Gras and that he headed out the door in a happy hurry with his friends.
That was the last she heard from her son.
No arguments or depression that Patty knows of had been troubling her son.
Nothing stood in the way of his future and his desire to continue doing well at college in Philadelphia, where he shared an apartment with several friends. Matthew had even gone shopping recently to buy curtains to decorate the place.
Matthew Grendel sounds like a nice young man.
And now he's missing.
Patty and her family need to know why.
Talk radio can only do so much.
I told Patty that I would help however I can and that people who called the WILK news lines also had offered to volunteer their time in the search. Patty thanked everyone and went back to trying to help solve the most heart-breaking mystery of her life.
The next caller seemed embarrassed that he had called to talk about another topic after listening to Patty while he was on hold. He said that Patty's call was hard call to follow.
He, too, had sensed the poise and courage in Patty's voice. He, too, wants to help.
Another caller suggested that a local club that explores abandoned mine shafts take on the challenge of looking for Matthew. He, too, wants to help.
We all want to help.
So stay alert.
Stay aware.
Look everywhere.
Ask questions.
Don't let anybody forget that we're looking for Matthew and won't give up until w e find him.
If you have any information, however unimportant it might seem, call Scranton police at 348-4134.
Somebody knows something.
pics at:
http://members.cox.net/whsanders/ please, can everyone copy and repost to get the word out everywhere...
Send this to everyone you know.............
