Families with missing loved ones hold out hope that WVC remains bring answers

WEST VALLEY CITY, Utah (ABC4) — When human remains were found this week in West Valley City, it brought a somber hope to families with missing loved ones.

Stephani Campbell’s mom, Bobbi Ann Campbell, has been missing for 31 years. News of the discovery this week brought a complicated mix of emotions. She explained, “At this point, it’s my fingers are crossed and it feels yucky to want that body to be my loved one. But I’m tired.”

“It’s hell on repeat.”
Stephanie Campbell’s mom has been missing for 31 years

That emotional exhaustion runs densely through this group of families that came together Thursday night to the pond where the skull was found. The longing for answers has turned into the belief that the latest finding is the closure they’ve been waiting for.

Cindy Martin’s daughter, Aletha Jo Williams, has been missing since 2001. She detailed, “I feel something different. The other times, I just sat home and waited. But this time it fits everything in the investigation.”

Debbie Caldwell has been looking for answers for the missing Susan Powell. She too feels hope. “Since Susan went missing here in West Valley, just three miles away from here. This is a very good possible location. So we just kind of have to wait it out.”

Marilyn Stevenson is the director of the Missing Coalition. She too waits for answers – not only for the families she works with, but in her own pain. Her son Justin Hooiman has been missing since 2017.

“We just want to bring Justin home. We want to bring him home with his family,” Stevenson continued, “And I know that that’s the way each one of these family members feel. They just want to bring their loved one home.”

Emily Nardacci waits for answers in Wyoming for her sister Ann Elliot, missing since 2020. “I mean, of course, you don’t want that to be the outcome. But it would be closure to where I could put respect on her name and take the right steps into closing that chapter and then figuring out, okay, what happened and why is she here?”

Same for Danny Gonzales. Every day holding on to hope that there will finally be answers for his brother Jordan. “Jordan has two daughters and they deserve to have that closure with with their dad.”

“It’s living in a nightmare, day after day.”
Jill Bearden’s son, Jordan Gonzales, has been missing for over a year

This is a club that none of these families want to be a part of. Every time there is a new discovery they are back together again. But they all are feeling the same pain, something no one else could understand or imagine.

No matter what comes of these remains, the families tell ABC4 that this is another opportunity to remind people of their loved ones. They speak out to make sure the names are not forgotten in the hopes answers are finally found.

We’re told this time of year the chance for more remains to be washed ashore is high. They want people to keep an eye out and report anything found to police. It could be the key to ending their painstaking pursuit for closure.