We left Minnesota on a relaxed high. We've made it over half way through the tour. We've gotten through the initial confusion of what to take out at each stop, who is fulfilling what roles and realize from here on out it's going to go faster and faster until the end. Up until today every day had 3 stops with lots of late night driving. From now on we have less stops each day, but still a lot of driving to do. We leave around noon and don't have to be in Iowa until 7, with the drive only 5 hours. Cool that! We stop for lunch and some scenic pictures. Before you know it we need to rush again. At least we are staying in the Central Time Zone.
Benjamin Roseland went missing in 2008. He was 19 years old and visiting friends. He left the apartment at 10:30pm to walk to a grocery store for something to eat. He never arrived there and has not been seen since. The shoes he was wearing were discovered blocks apart from one another during one of the many searches conducted for him.
We pull in front of the Sacret Hearts Chapel, the location for tonight's vigil. Luckily, someone is waiting outside so we know we can unload a table of things and park in the rear. It's a beautiful church and filled with family, friends and members of the community. All ages are present here tonight. Ben's Aunt Julie greets us and is hosting the vigil. She says tonight is not a night to be sad, it's a night of hope and a night to get Ben's information out. Ben's 2 sisters spoke. His younger sister, Helen, was only 15 when Ben disappeared and wasn't able to do much back then. Now that she's older she says she is taking on a bigger role in attempting to find out what happened to her big brother 6 years ago. Ben's older sister, Audra, spoke of her work in the science field and how things should follow a logical path. How her brain cannot accept Ben just vanishing. She speaks of all the things Ben has missed and brings her children up, a daughter who I believe was a baby when Ben went missing, and a son who was born after Ben's disappearance. Life marches forward, lives change, time goes by, we get older. Yet for families of the missing, at the same time, nothing changes at all. They are still waiting for answers, they think daily about what happened, what more can be done. Constantly second guessing decisions and actions, constantly doing the what ifs...Audra asks the audience if anyone has any questions and her little boy, standing besides her raises his hand. She looks down at him "Do you have a question?" "Yes", he responds "Why is he missing?"
Missing teenage boys, my Achilles heel. Yet even with Ben's nephew asking probing questions and tears being shed, this family worked hard at keeping things upbeat. Real tears can be shed later, celebrating Ben was more important for right now. Everyone needed to be out of the church by 8:30 so there was a world wind of activity cleaning up as we brought the van out front for more pictures. Julie insisted on taking photos of us, pictures of the 5 of us are scarce so we appreciated that. As the family takes turns taking pictures besides the van Audra's children are asked to find their uncle. They point up at him and turn smiling for the camera. Then this vocal little boy announces to whoever will listen, "I've never met him".
Elisa
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