Mar 2, 2008 5:20 pm US/Central
Peterson Fundraiser Helps Other Missing Persons
Event Will Aid in Searches For Stacy Peterson and Trust Fund For Children
Merrionette Park, Ill. (CBS) ―
Family and friends of Stacy Peterson are gathered Sunday for a fundraiser. The money will help pay for searches for Stacy and a trust fund for her kids, as CBS 2's Joanie Lum reports.
Supporters wore T-shirts and bid on numerous auction items to raise money to help Stacy Peterson's family resume the search for the missing Bolingbrook mother and to raise the reward for information leading to her whereabouts.
"The more money we can raise, the more people will come out and give information about Stacy Peterson," said Peterson neighbor Sharon Bychowski.
She was 23-years-old when she was last seen October 28. Her husband, Drew Peterson insists she ran away with another man. But supporters don't believe she would abandon her children.
Stacy's aunt, Candace Aiken says she was like a mother to Stacy.
"Which is what I still want to be, it's very hard not to have her around," Aiken said.
Many visitors did not personally know Stacy Peterson.
"There was something that drew me to Stacy, it was about the abuse of women, I saw it in California on the news," said Julie, a woman from California.
The first song was dedicated to Stacy Peterson, but the event focused attention on several missing person cases. Lisa Stebic, the Plainfield mother of two, lived a few miles away from the Petersons. In April, she will have been gone a year.
"We have a common bond, we understand what it is to lose a loved one and we all want answers," said Stebic's cousin Melanie Greenberg.
And they're supporting the family of Brad Olsen, who was last seen leaving a DeKalb bar a year ago.
"It's crazy to go to bed and wake up not knowing where your loved one is," said Olsen's cousin Audrey Williams.
The Peterson search team hopes to resume air, ground and water searches in the spring.
There's still a $25,000 reward for information that will help find Stacy Peterson.
(© MMIX, CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved.)
Jewish Celebrities
Click to enlarge
Stumble It!
