To: Editor@People.com
Dear Editor,
I am contacting you to ask you to please consider featuring one or more Missing child or adult in each of your issues.
People Magazine is in a wonderful and prime position to help thousands of Missing individuals. I hope that you can realize just how much you could help.
For every person who contacts you, there are thousands that are represented that could benefit from your efforts.
"People helping People" would be such an amazing thing. Please consider this.
I speak with personal knowledge on this subject as I am the daughter of a missing person.
When someone vanishes or is abducted, this is something that never goes away. For the family and friends of the missing, it stays with them for the remainder of their life. It's pain does not go away. The 'not knowing' swirls the hearts of so many people, I don't believe anyone could even begin to put a valid count on it.
There are so many unsolved cases for missing, abducted, and murdered and they all deserve to be heard.
Their voice has been taken.
We must be their voice.
Thank you,
Misty Lynn Walker
Daughter of missing person, Debra Ann Wilhite
Author of "Little Misty: My Big Red Button (non-fiction)
-----------------------------------------------
This campaign to People Magazine was introduced to me by Drew Kesse, father of Jennifer Kesse, who was abducted from Orlando, FL in January 2006.
Below is a link to the campaign/event that was created on facebook by "Help Find Emillie Hoyt." It includes additional ways that you can contact People Magazine. Please consider contacting them! It only takes a moment.
https://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=196813350359189
Saturday, April 2, 2011
Thursday, February 24, 2011
THE SQUEAKY WHEEL TOUR - Performers helping the Missing - whilst simply doin' what they do
Are you a performing musician/band/(comedian, even) ? OR do you have a loved one who is a missing person?
I know, most of you are thinking "What the heck do these two things have in common?" - right? Just stay with me, and I'll explain.
Years ago, I may have thought the same thing. My mother, Debra Ann Wilhite, was a missing person, it was something I'd lived with my whole life. On the flip side, I had been doing comedy at night the past two years and had been in the comedy industry for ten years. Incorporating these two things together had never even occurred to me... that is, until I met Jannel Rap.
When I first met Jannel, it was like we'd been brought together by a higher force. And I still do truly believe that is entirely the case.
Jannel Rap is a singer/songwriter/performer. Her sister, Gina Boss, was as well until October 17, 2000. Gina performed at an open mic in Lincoln, Nebraska one night. She left the pub that night and was never seen again. The next day her car was found across the street, her guitar and music was in the trunk of her car, and the trunk door was sitting ajar. Gina, however, was no where to be found. Today in 2011, this is still the case.
One of my strongest beliefs is that we are all to use what we are given. Jannel Rap is a prime example of this. After her sister went missing, she began profiling her sister, and loads of other missing persons, as well, within her music sets while she was performing. She later organized "G.I.N.A. for Missing Persons" - an organization that brings musical artists and the missing together, getting those who are missing who have no "draw" that the media covets, into the public's eye.
She then began "The Squeaky Wheel Tour" - and it became an INTERNATIONAL Tour with hundreds of different musical artists and hundreds of the missing were profiled. Local artists who only perform in their little home time could participate, national artists who tour across the country could participate... this allowed for many, many more missing people to get the attention that they deserve. It was perfect.
For anyone who is thinking profiling missing persons within their music set would "put a damper" on their performance, think again --- I did the first COMEDY show in this way, and it was great. People had an awesome time watching the comedians perform, and in between each comic, I profiled a different missing adult/child who was local to our specific area. It was an awesome show, AND people went away knowing they were also helping the missing. ---And this is how your show would be as well.
If you are a performer, please consider being a part of The Squeaky Wheel Tour.
If you have a loved one who is missing who you would like to be featured at one of the Squeaky Wheel events, OR you are a performer who would like to participate, please contact JANNEL RAP by visiting http://www.411gina.org/ or http://www.jannelrap.com/.
If you have questions or concerns that you would like to address prior to contacting Jannel, you are welcome to contact me directly at MistyLynnWalker@yahoo.com or on Facebook.
It doesn't matter if you are a cover band, a folk singer, a one man show with you and a guitar, a rock/pop artist, country, heavy metal... You can be a part of something so very big, that helps so, so many people.
Please, consider this.
Misty Lynn
I know, most of you are thinking "What the heck do these two things have in common?" - right? Just stay with me, and I'll explain.
Years ago, I may have thought the same thing. My mother, Debra Ann Wilhite, was a missing person, it was something I'd lived with my whole life. On the flip side, I had been doing comedy at night the past two years and had been in the comedy industry for ten years. Incorporating these two things together had never even occurred to me... that is, until I met Jannel Rap.
When I first met Jannel, it was like we'd been brought together by a higher force. And I still do truly believe that is entirely the case.
Jannel Rap is a singer/songwriter/performer. Her sister, Gina Boss, was as well until October 17, 2000. Gina performed at an open mic in Lincoln, Nebraska one night. She left the pub that night and was never seen again. The next day her car was found across the street, her guitar and music was in the trunk of her car, and the trunk door was sitting ajar. Gina, however, was no where to be found. Today in 2011, this is still the case.
One of my strongest beliefs is that we are all to use what we are given. Jannel Rap is a prime example of this. After her sister went missing, she began profiling her sister, and loads of other missing persons, as well, within her music sets while she was performing. She later organized "G.I.N.A. for Missing Persons" - an organization that brings musical artists and the missing together, getting those who are missing who have no "draw" that the media covets, into the public's eye.
She then began "The Squeaky Wheel Tour" - and it became an INTERNATIONAL Tour with hundreds of different musical artists and hundreds of the missing were profiled. Local artists who only perform in their little home time could participate, national artists who tour across the country could participate... this allowed for many, many more missing people to get the attention that they deserve. It was perfect.
For anyone who is thinking profiling missing persons within their music set would "put a damper" on their performance, think again --- I did the first COMEDY show in this way, and it was great. People had an awesome time watching the comedians perform, and in between each comic, I profiled a different missing adult/child who was local to our specific area. It was an awesome show, AND people went away knowing they were also helping the missing. ---And this is how your show would be as well.
If you are a performer, please consider being a part of The Squeaky Wheel Tour.
If you have a loved one who is missing who you would like to be featured at one of the Squeaky Wheel events, OR you are a performer who would like to participate, please contact JANNEL RAP by visiting http://www.411gina.org/ or http://www.jannelrap.com/.
If you have questions or concerns that you would like to address prior to contacting Jannel, you are welcome to contact me directly at MistyLynnWalker@yahoo.com or on Facebook.
It doesn't matter if you are a cover band, a folk singer, a one man show with you and a guitar, a rock/pop artist, country, heavy metal... You can be a part of something so very big, that helps so, so many people.
Please, consider this.
Misty Lynn
Monday, August 2, 2010
Right this very moment
Never fails that dates seem to still sneak up on me sometimes. August 2nd. Of course. I knew it was coming up. It crossed my mind ever so briefly one day last week. And then got to work this morning and saw my calender was still on July. Turned it to August and -bam- there it is. Always makes it so much worse when I'm already having a bad day... and then am forced to 'remember that I forgot.'
Today is my sister Amy's birthday. We're supposed to be out somewhere right now having a glass of wine, raising our nice wine glasses into the air over our corner table in our favorite place.... clinking our glasses together, laughing, smiling, and making enough noise to disturb the people at the table next to us.... talking about the memories of her past birthdays... how much trouble we got in together when we were young...
That's what we're supposed to be doing... right this very moment. Right this very moment, I'd say, "You know you actually look younger than you did this time last year. I can barely see those crowes feet and that gray hair," (this is me pointing out that one gray hair). And she'd smack my hand away and we would laugh. (After she pointed out my gray hair.)
That's what we're supposed to be doing right this very moment. Right this very moment, we'd get all serious and I'd tell her about my problems. And even though she's heard them all before she would listen contently as if it was all new. And she would hug me and tell me she loves her little sister. Right at this very moment.
Right at this very moment, I am wishing with all of my heart that this could all be a true story, that you'd seen more birthdays than you did.
Seven. Ha. It's supposed to be your lucky number Amy.
Not the number of candles on your last cake.
Right at this very moment.
Love you. If I had a glass of wine I'd raise it to you. To my big sister. Happy Birthday Amy Sue.
Wednesday, March 24, 2010
A (very) Short & Sweet View - Base Topics of "Little Misty: My Big Red Button" Book by Misty Lynn Walker
1) MISSING PERSONS CASE - My mother, Debra Ann Wilhite, has been a missing person from Evansville, Indiana since October 1974 when I was a year old.
2) LOSS OF A SECOND PARENT - My father, Jeff Wilhite, was killed in an auto/train accident in 1976 when I was three years old.
3) HAPPINESS IS HELPING ST. JUDE - My only sibling, Amy Sue Wilhite, passed away when I was five at St. Jude Children's Research Hospital after battling leukemia. A large chunk of this book outlines my thought process and feelings at the age of five while dealing with her loss and the survivors guilt that followed.
4) STAND-UP COMEDY - Doing stand-up comedy helped me to regain my 'voice.'
5) FAITH, POSITIVITY, and your PERCEPTION of things - and how it can change your life.
2) LOSS OF A SECOND PARENT - My father, Jeff Wilhite, was killed in an auto/train accident in 1976 when I was three years old.
3) HAPPINESS IS HELPING ST. JUDE - My only sibling, Amy Sue Wilhite, passed away when I was five at St. Jude Children's Research Hospital after battling leukemia. A large chunk of this book outlines my thought process and feelings at the age of five while dealing with her loss and the survivors guilt that followed.
4) STAND-UP COMEDY - Doing stand-up comedy helped me to regain my 'voice.'
5) FAITH, POSITIVITY, and your PERCEPTION of things - and how it can change your life.
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