People interviewed that you felt the most sorry for

[Clockworkhigh]

Norman Ladner's parents. I don't know, they seemed like a nice hard working mild mannered family who genuinely loved their son. As far as I remember there werent any other children

Pat Conway, the husband of Ayleen Conway who mysteriously was involved in a car accident despite their house being disturbed implicating a robbery (etc. garden hose and iron on). They had 7 kids by the looks of it and Pat seemed like such a nice church going man who loved his wife as well. It had to have hurt him not knowing why Ayleen was out on that deserted road. Was there a robbery? Was it all an accident? Suicide? Or did she not want anyone knowing why she was out there in the first place. I felt sorry for him, married 33 years to her, a mild mannered man by the looks of it. Not sure if he is still alive though

The husband of the Blind River murders (forget his name). His wife of 39 years is gunned down by a man while they were camping out in their motorhome. How could you live with that vision for the rest of your life of seeing that? Reminded me of Pat Conway in a way

Rob Shaver. Okay I know there are a slew of people that think he has something to do with Angela Hammond's disappearance but I have never thought that. If his story is in fact true than that is a torturous way to see your fiancee kidnapped by chasing the car only to have your transmission blow. I always felt like he fought back tears in the interview only to try and put on a brave face. 20 years old too. Sad.

Dwayne McKorkindale's widow. Two young girls to raise after her husband is senselessly shot dead at a pay phone. She claims she has to explain to her girls that "daddy is with Jesus" and can only show pictures to them of their father.

Mary Morris' husband Jay I believe it was in the "Two Mary Murders" segment. I'm not talking about the prime suspect Mike Morris the husband from the other Mary Morris but the first one who had his wife die from what looks like a mistaken hit. If it's any consolation I believe the families of the two Marys (other than Mike Morris) have bonded together and helped each other out.

Christophe Day's father. He never sees his son and is so close pretty near every chance he gets and then last I heard Christophe eventually died in 1998 while living with his mother in Europe.

That's all for now, but I know others have more

[Oldschooler81]

Originally Posted by Clockworkhigh

The husband of the Blind River murders (forget his name). His wife of 39 years is gunned down by a man while they were camping out in their motorhome. How could you live with that vision for the rest of your life of seeing that? Reminded me of Pat Conway in a way

Rob Shaver. Okay I know there are a slew of people that think he has something to do with Angela Hammond's disappearance but I have never thought that. If his story is in fact true than that is a torturous way to see your fiancee kidnapped by chasing the car only to have your transmission blow. I always felt like he fought back tears in the interview only to try and put on a brave face. 20 years old too. Sad.

Christophe Day's father. He never sees his son and is so close pretty near every chance he gets and then last I heard Christophe eventually died in 1998 while living with his mother in Europe.

I agree with all the ones you mentioned, especially these.

Yeah, Gordon (the Blind River husband) seemed like such a nice old man that had been through a horrible loss. I thought it was especially heartbreaking (albeit understandable from his pov) when he said to the effect of "I don't care if he comes back for me" - implying that he barely wanted to live after his wife was murdered.

I also believe Rob Shaffer did the best he could in catching the suspect, and even if it wasn't his fault you could tell he blamed himself for it (as Angela's mom also said) and felt horrible in both respects. It's really too bad that cellphones didn't really exist en masse in 1991 (there were but usually just carphones until the mid-late 90s) since I'm sure alot of cases like Angies could've been prevented or at least lessened.


Just off the top of my head I'd also add the Baskins, Colleen Ritter and Gordon Page's parents.

[browneyes106]

I really feel sorry for a lot of people who have missing loved ones. I remember feeling sorry for Sharon Zelinski was abused her dad and foster families. I remember having tears when Keith Warren's mother was interviewed. I also cried when Jodi Bordeaux's husband talked about he tried to save Jodi and their unborn baby.

[mark10]

Let's not forget Christi Nichols' family (excluding Mark of course), Wendy Camp's family (excluding Chad Noe of course), Philip Fraser's parents, and those already mentioned here.

[shanejm]

I always have felt sorry for Brooke Bakers mother. She seemed totally lost without her daughter and extremely angry...then when the case was solved she seemed like she had no reason to live and totally numb.

[UMfan77]

My heart broke for Guss Hoffman's mother. She was literally begging with any UM viewer that may have information, to go to the police. She was the most desparate person I've ever seen on UM.

[Kane]

Originally Posted by Oldschooler81

Yeah, Gordon (the Blind River husband) seemed like such a nice old man that had been through a horrible loss. I thought it was especially heartbreaking (albeit understandable from his pov) when he said to the effect of "I don't care if he comes back for me" - implying that he barely wanted to live after his wife was murdered.

I too felt (and still feel) sorry for Gordon McAllister. Tragically, a significant part of him died with his wife Jackie, so I don't blame him for making the comment that you described. When you experience the death of a spouse to whom you were married for a long time, I don't think you ever fully recover from it.

[MegtheEgg86]

I always felt badly for the Nixons, who followed up all those leads on Kari Lynn--no matter how tenuous--only to discover years later that she had been murdered the night she disappeared.

Kathy Hobbs' mother was proud of and so distraught over her daughter, and it was heartbreaking to watch, especially when she said, "And as well as being my daughter, she was also a very good friend."

Rogest Cain's son Lynn, who was interviewed extensively in the update after following a lead to Kansas City where his missing father had been sighted, was another. He was poised, but the look of total disappointment on his face and the sound of it in his voice after finding no trace of his dad was upsetting.

[browneyes106]

Originally Posted by Oldschooler81

I agree with all the ones you mentioned, especially these.

Yeah, Gordon (the Blind River husband) seemed like such a nice old man that had been through a horrible loss. I thought it was especially heartbreaking (albeit understandable from his pov) when he said to the effect of "I don't care if he comes back for me" - implying that he barely wanted to live after his wife was murdered.

I also believe Rob Shaffer did the best he could in catching the suspect, and even if it wasn't his fault you could tell he blamed himself for it (as Angela's mom also said) and felt horrible in both respects. It's really too bad that cellphones didn't really exist en masse in 1991 (there were but usually just carphones until the mid-late 90s) since I'm sure alot of cases like Angies could've been prevented or at least lessened.


Just off the top of my head I'd also add the Baskins, Colleen Ritter and Gordon Page's parents.

I always used to get a lump in my throat every time I watched the Gordon Page segment.

[crochetbuff]

The Baskins.

[UMfan77]

Originally Posted by browneyes106

I always used to get a lump in my throat every time I watched the Gordon Page segment.

Yeah, that poor kid being misdiagnosed all those years. Was misdiagnosed as a schizophrenic, was given medication and had horrendous reactions to it. The scene where Gordon was having nightmares and telling his father that "cats are scratching inside my body" was so sad. The music in that scene made it ever more creepy.

[TracyLynnS]

Since Gordon Page's parents had decided to move/retire to FL from MI, I wonder why they decided to leave Gordon at a group home for special needs people back in MI.

Why didn't they take him to FL with them, then find a good place for him there? They could have visited him much more often if he was in the same state, as opposed to 1200 miles away.

I understand that the experts were (erroneously, imo) telling Gordon's parents that he needed more independence, or whatever, but why did that mean he needed to be separated from his family by such a great distance?

He could have been treated in a group home close to his family, and had normal visits with them, if he was in the same state. But all the way up in MI, he'd be seeing them, maybe twice a year. For someone with his condition, that's torture.

I don't understand why they chose to make that decision. Was it pressure from the "experts"? Were his parents under the impression that MI had the best group homes? And where were his brothers? Were they in MI, were they in school, had they graduated college, did they move to FL too, what was going on with them?

[MissFit29]

Dorothy and Ken Sova.

Patty Stallings (when she breaks down at the end of the interview - "I've lost everything.")

Craig Reinhardt's wife - she finds him, but he has no memories of her or their marriage. Heartbreaking.

[atomicfizz]

I agree about Craig's wife. I felt so bad for her. There was just something about her. I can't describe it. But I know women like her. I don't even know how to explain what I mean. She just seemed so happy to get married. It's so sad how she's so heartbroken and just wants her husband back and then he has no memory of her at all. I can't even imagine going through that.

I felt bad for a lot of those mentioned here.

The Baskins, for sure.
Gordon Page's family, though I agree with TracyLynn, I never understood why they had to have him so far away!
Keith Warrens mother
Any people who have a family member missing and they get pranksters calling or sending letters to make them think the person is alive, giving them hope, only to find they had been dead all along.
Cindy James, her life must have been hell whether or not it was real or she had some mental illness that made her to it to herself.

[browneyes106]

Originally Posted by TracyLynnS

Since Gordon Page's parents had decided to move/retire to FL from MI, I wonder why they decided to leave Gordon at a group home for special needs people back in MI.

Why didn't they take him to FL with them, then find a good place for him there? They could have visited him much more often if he was in the same state, as opposed to 1200 miles away.

I understand that the experts were (erroneously, imo) telling Gordon's parents that he needed more independence, or whatever, but why did that mean he needed to be separated from his family by such a great distance?

He could have been treated in a group home close to his family, and had normal visits with them, if he was in the same state. But all the way up in MI, he'd be seeing them, maybe twice a year. For someone with his condition, that's torture.

I don't understand why they chose to make that decision. Was it pressure from the "experts"? Were his parents under the impression that MI had the best group homes? And where were his brothers? Were they in MI, were they in school, had they graduated college, did they move to FL too, what was going on with them?

I wondered a lot about that too. I thought it was weird that would move out of the state and leave Gordon in a group home. I can understand where families of people with disabilities and special needs feel that their loves ones should be in a group homes. But I agree they would have probably only seen Gordon maybe 1 or 2 times a year. Group homes exist everywhere. I have a friend who works at a group home for high functioning autistic people. Some of the residents in that home have part time jobs and have attended college. I think Pages could have taken Gordon to Florida with them. Florida is a pretty big state. The Pages on the advice of experts could have placed Gordon in a group home that wasn't nearby their home. They could visited him once or few times a month. They could have given Gordon some independence without having to be too far away. I do wonder a lot about the brothers maybe they stayed behind in Michigan to finish school or work.