VP Rachel is the type of person who not only saved cards, letters and notes, but she carried them with her in her luggage when she traveled. I can confirm that they have been read. It wasn't an easy thing to do since it's an invasion of her privacy but IMHO, a necessary one to make sure nothing was missed in our search.
RC Milk that Dan Rather connection. I know he's from Texas and he has that network's ear and a show that could be helpful.
AMV and Rather I am taking too routes to AMW. They are going to get tired of hearing from us and give Rachel her 30 seconds. I forgot to mention that Dan Rather's older brother Don was a coach at our high school. Both Janet and I had him for health. I talked to UNSOLVED MYSTERIES today. They were having trouble getting one of the local TV stations to release video of Rachel's stories. I called the station and the news producer is going to try and get them some. I will go to another station if I have to. BTW, I have four months of my journal added to rachelcookesearch.org. I sure make a lot of mistakes! I'm glad that my sister proofed this version.
Local news Unbelievable that the local news wouldn't release that footage, but persevere. That sounds like some flunky's decision. Appeal to the news director, then if that doesn't work, hit the general manager. Threaten to write a letter to the local newspaper if they're still being jerky, or file a complaint with the local Radio & Television News Organization that the station is part of. It's sobering to think that UM is getting the runaround. I would think they would snap their fingers and get results. Maybe that they're on Lifetime has lessened their impact. If the station being difficult is part of a network, and they almost all are, that's another avenue for getting complaints dealth with. The noive of those people! Nice that you have the Rather family connection. Have you pitched this to People magazine? Find the name of the writer who covered the Gaddis/Pond (Oregon girls) story and approach.
KVUE and our new allies The news director took the request for footage to the general manager. I'm sure he/she will come to their senses. My jouranl alone has tons of ads pasted on each side. They are making plenty of money on this. I met with People Against Violant Crimes last night for almost 5 hours. Lori Bible, Colleen Reed's sister, was there. She went through the same frustrations as we have. They are joining our team. She has a direct line into AMW and other shows plus numerious law enforcement agencies. Lori went through hell getting Kenneth McDuff convicted in the early 90s and then had to relive everything when they found Colleen's body a few years later.
RC Sounds to me like you finally have a good advocate in Lori...stay with that for sure, and if it means you need a letter writing campaign, come on back and tell us, because you know we will help!
Carrying this over from another thread... I read on another thread that RC has quit the forum. I hope he reconsiders and understands he has a lot of compassionate people on the other side of his screen. Lots of posters are helping in the best ways they know how, and I think that should be appreciated. Maybe RC was having a bad day -- that happens. I think his reaction was inappropriate. The points posters made about the differences in Rachel's case and the Elizabeth Smart one are huge and I don't need to recite them again. And as others have said, the media can't work without help. Yesterday I spoke to another highly experienced professional about Rachel's case -- that makes two. They both had the same reaction -- hire an expert to find out what local law enforcement is doing and help in ways where locals aren't capable. Like I've said ad nauseum, the Hooters money is a giant pot o' gold that the Cooke team should be drawing from for searches, rewards and media buys. The fact that Rachel wasn't on duty on the time, or even for weeks, doesn't matter. It's like the Playboy magazine community; she is still a Hooters girl. If RC or whomever doesn't understand that, believe me, the Hooters management will. Get someone on your side to make that point very directly. See it from their corporate view, not from your possible queasiness about Rachel's connection there. I don't want sensitive details of the case shared with us or anyone not involved in solving it. But I like to know things are moving ahead. I also don't get into snits if my suggestions aren't followed. Take or leave 'em. But if there's one tip I've given that I feel has the most value, it's this Hooters angle. Perhaps there's a reason why it isn't feasible, but I haven't heard that yet. Meanwhile, here's a link for a story about a family going through much the same situation as the Cookes are, and a mention of a missing persons network: http://www.sltrib.com/06142002/utah/745344.htm
Good point, VP As long as we understand that he shouldn't share stuff with anyone outside his team. But that shouldn't stop us from bringing up questions and keeping him inspired. I think there's a lot on Rachel's case that we can help with. Getting some of her friends to post so we can know her better would be of service. On private threads, of course. If we ask something they are not allowed to answer, they can tell us and we'll back off. But this place is powerful with manpower and contacts in many cities and communities.
I have decided to stay around I have decided to stay on forumsforjustice. Not for myself, but for Rachel's sake. The long hours and lack of sleep for the last 5 1/2 months has taken it's toll on Janet and me. All I ask is to please remember that there is no difference to me between Elizabeth Smart's abduction and Rachels. They both have loving parents and did not deserve what happened to them. Every person deserves the same treatment no matter what their age, race, income, location and connections are. Abductions are treated as entertainment and that isn't right.
RC I'm glad you decided to stay, for whatever reason. I don't respond much on Rachel's threads. I have a daughter, an only child, that is about the same age. I can't even imagine losing her for any reason.... I pray your daughter is soon returned in good health.
Doing my part I have printed out the poster on your webpage for Rachel, RC, and am hanging it up on the bulletin board of my internet cafe. I wish I could do more from here in western Oregon! (Just a thought, you might consider creating a printable poster with a colour picture of Rachel, in addition to the one with the black and white picture. I opted to print out the webpage itself because I thought the colour picture would be far more eye-catching.) Praying for you, your wife and most of all, for Rachel, Ayeka
RC I am glad you have returned. I am one of the fortunate ones who have gotten to know your whole family and I know how you hurt not only for Rachel but for Elizabeth, Jahi, Laura and all the other missing people and their familes. By posting here, you give the forum a tremendous insight to how a parent feels and tries to deal with not knowing where their child is. As members take on those feelings hopefully it motivates them to be that extra pair of eyes on the next search and unfortunately, we all know that next search is just a matter of time. Maybe if enough folks get involved pressure can be brought to changing laws so that it simply isn't worth it to these creeps to take what isn't theirs. Please give Janet and Joann a big hug for me.
AMW We are trying AMERICA'S MOST WANTED one more time. PEOPLE AGAINST VIOLENT CRIME typed up a letter to John Walsh and their director talked to John Walsh's main assitant. The letter was signed by the director, Janet and me and FAXed to the assistant. The letter is supposed to be handed directly to John Walsh. PAVC said my letter had too much anger in it. JR and I don't agree. What do you think? Dear Mr. Walsh, My daughter Rachel disappeared on January 10, 2002, while jogging in our Central Texas neighborhood. We reported her as a missing person the following day. I, along with many others, have tried repeatably to get Rachel's story on AMERICA'S MOST WANTED. As I watch story after story appear on your show, I become more depressed about how the media treats an older missing person's life. Younger children are featured every week on your show. It seems that a 19-year-old is not important to the national media unless she is involved in some kind of scandal. My daughter Rachel is an athlete, she loves to sing and was attending Mesa Junior College in San Diego, California. As a father, please ask yourself this question. When your child grows older, does her life become less important? Do you love her less? Rachel and her sister JoAnn are blessings to my wife Janet and me. I think that I love Rachel more now than ever. We were just getting to the point where we could talk as peers instead of just father to daughter. I have been keeping a journal of our activities since January 10, 2002. That journal, along with other information may be found on http://www.rachelcookesearch.org. Please consider putting Rachel's story on AMERICA'S MOST WANTED. We have been searching for her for over five months with no success. If someone took her out of our area, we need to get the word out. You of all people know about the living hell my family is going through. Please help. I am begging you. Thank you for your time. Robert Cooke Rachel's father
RC your letter was just fine... If I were you and considered the lack of response down there, I would have been ugly where you were gracious.
Williamson County Sun So much for stressing repeatedly that this is about Rachel...nice write up for the forum though and at least folks know we are still searching for Rachel if they read this.
Hey...it mentions her name, it says we are searching, it says we are putting flyers back up...the focus is Rachel, with a plug for the forum, and a single mention of Elizabeth! Considering we know how badly the press can mess up...this is pretty darn accurate!
Moab Yes, it's accurate but I begged the reporter to focus mostly on Rachel with the forum as a minor mention. I also asked that my name not be used but was told they had to use it to tie into the forum. At least it got another article about Rachel and the fact that we are still searching "out there" locally. I do think they were really looking for a new angle, saw one and grabbed it. I am not as upset as I was when I first read it.
