This July 15, 2013 marks the 50
year anniversary that my cousin Mary Ann had been taken from our family. I
never met Mary Ann because when she was stolen at sixteen from a traveling
sales magazine group July 15, 1963, I was born four years and five months after
Mary Ann’s disappearance.
Just because I have never met Mary
Ann doesn’t mean I don’t love nor care about her, in fact that is why I am
writing this today and pushing internet places posting whenever possible to do my part in helping find my lost cousin.
When I first learned about Mary
Ann’s disappearance I wasn’t much younger than she was taken away from our
family. My parents though concerned
about what we did, who we were out with even allowing us to walk to and from
school always had Mary Ann disappeared on the back of their minds.
I too kept Mary Ann in the back of
my mind of the years. The story in the
family as well as an old newspaper article titled; “Someone’s child; summer in
the city- whatever happened to Mary Ann Switalski” can now be found on
Blogspot.com among other many places on
line such as missing and exploited children, Does network, Blogspot.com, face
book, Charley’s Project and many more. It
hasn’t been easy knowing that a relative you never met is listed missing person
cold case especially being a mother of five children now, myself.
One person I often think about who deserves
to have answers the most is Mary Ann’s sister,
her words haunted me and drives me to push to find her long, lost
missing sister after their mother had passed away, “Momma you finally know the
truth and have the answers to whatever happened to Mary Ann.” I want to end our
family’s long unanswered questions to what happened and why our Mary Ann was
taken, stolen so young from us. I never met her, but if I could I’d tell her
she’s loved by so many of us today.
If you know Mary Ann Switalski and
her story please help bring her home back to her loving family, she’s loved and
missed by all. Thanks.
Written By;
Mary Bruhns Riesbeck,
Mary Ann Switalski’s second cousin
