Family and friends of missing paddleboarder continue to seek answers

Yahoo

08-06-2025

Jun. 8—More than a thousand hours of searching for missing West Glacier resident Emily Rea has yielded few clues to her whereabouts. Nearly a year after her disappearance, friends and family are organizing more ground search teams, hoping to get federal investigators involved and spreading the news about her far and wide.
Rea, 34, was last seen on July 16, 2024. Her last known location is the Hungry Horse Reservoir, where she put her paddleboard in near the Riverside boat launch.
Her car was discovered in the parking area there on July 17. Her paddleboard was found upside down in the Flossy Creek area more than 2 miles west of the boat launch with her paddle assembled and stowed.
At a rally organized for Rea at Whitefish United Methodist Church on May 31, people wore shirts emblazoned with "never stop praying." An auction was held to raise money for a private investigator. Booths were arranged so people could sign up to volunteer for the search effort. Friends sold plants raised by family in Georgia and potted by Rea's students at the Skola School in Whitefish.
Nina Rea, Emily's mother, said they are appreciative of the efforts by the Flathead County Sheriff's Office to locate her daughter. But the unanswered questions raised by the circumstances of Rea's disappearance have prompted friends and family to widen the scope of their search.
"We're navigating uncharted waters, so to speak. Where does one find a playbook on what do you do when your child disappears without a trace? We're forging ahead, not knowing where we're going, except the goal of finding Em," Nina Rea said.
Relatives believe there are enough anomalies to warrant broadening the search, extending beyond the water of the reservoir and investigating the possibility of foul play.
Nina Rea listed the location of Rea's paddleboard, how her paddle was stowed and assembled, and the decision to bring an electric key fob in a non-waterproof bag, as details that give her pause. Known as a competent outdoorswoman, Rea was organized and tidy.
Her aunt, Emme Sanders, also had questions about the location of the bag Rea's paddleboard is stored in, which was found stuffed under the board's bungee cords.
"She typically always takes care of her things. I don't know if you're a paddleboarder, but most do not take that with them on the water. Emily, in the past, has always left that in her vehicle," Sanders said.
During a presentation at last weekend's rally, Rea's family and friends said they are at a turning point with their search. While raising money to hire a private investigator, they want federal help on the case and are hoping volunteers will organize their own search groups.
Nina Rea said authorities last summer discouraged them from conducting an independent investigation, worried about it potentially interfering with the search. As a second summer without Rea gets underway, they believe time is of the essence — and they want to leave no stone unturned.
MEANWHILE, THE Sheriff's Office is continuing its investigation into Rea's disappearance. County law enforcement worked with multiple agencies last year to locate Rea, an effort that included K-9 units, divers, volunteers, and boat and ground teams. The search also employed sonar, underwater robots, drones and a Two Bear Air helicopter.
Sheriff Brian Heino said investigators will again deploy sonar, including side-scan sonar, this summer. Side-scan sonar is used for detecting objects on the floor of a body of water. It is employed, for example, to map shipwrecks.
Heino said investigators took the opportunity to search with dogs two weeks ago while the water in the reservoir was still low, at its winter pool.
Searching the reservoir comes with challenges, Heino said. Because it's a river valley that was backfilled from the Hungry Horse Dam, there are extreme variations in depth and an underwater landscape of stumps and felled trees on the muddy bottom.
"We have all these stumps that are at the bottom that when you're running sonar, you're getting a picture that's not exact," Heino said.
Search teams also ran into technical problems with the sonar last summer, issues that have since been fixed.
Heino met with Rea's family in early June to discuss the search efforts. He said the Sheriff's Office is sharing maps with them as they plan independent searches, as well as any information they may request going forward.
"For closure for the family, we have to consider what their needs are for the processing of this tragedy. If this allows them to do that, we'll give them the information [we've gathered]," Heino said.
As for getting federal investigators involved, Heino said the search has already received aid from federal agencies. His team is working with the Department of Homeland Security to access Rea' laptop, he said.
"Basically, as we move forward, you have to have valid information. I think a lot of the frustration here is that there's conceptual ideas that things have happened, but you have to have factual information to move forward on it," Heino said.
The Sheriff's Office followed up on myriad tips about Rea last summer, including claims by psychics, as news of her disappearance spread.
REA WORKED as a speech pathologist, most recently at the nature-based Skola School in Whitefish. She also helped manage a vacation rental in Halfmoon. She is described by those close to her as having a large, giving heart. Her coworker Ashley Thomas-Meager said Rea deserves to have people show up for her, like she would have shown up for people in her life.
"She was very reliable, and just like a wonderful person. Her smile could really light up a room. And it was important for me to be here, because people who didn't know her need to know that she's out there and she deserves to be found," Thomas-Meager said.
Nina Rea said the rally for Rea made her feel encouraged, because there is a community of people bonded together in support of finding her daughter. Referencing her "never stop praying" shirt, Nina Rea said it is her faith that is giving her strength to move forward.
"My life, my health, has been covered by people who say, specifically, 'I want to pray for you.' ... And I want to share that with others for the prayer support. I think otherwise, I'd be a blithering idiot on the floor in front of you, because it's not my strength," Nina Rea said.
"We've asked for [prayer] to be at the top of every hour, for anybody who can, because at this point in time, there is not a continent on this Earth where someone is not praying for Emily Rea to be found, and that's astounding to me," she added.
Those interested in getting involved in the search for Emily Rea should go to eyesforemily.com. Officials urge anyone with information regarding Rea to contact the Sheriff's Office at 406-752-TIPS.
Taylor Inman may be reached at 758-4440 or [e-mail].
Volunteers sold plants to raise funds to hire a private investigator to aid in the search of Emily Rea, a 33-year-old West Glacier resident who went missing in the Hungry Horse Reservoir in July 2024. (Taylor Inman/Daily Inter Lake)
Missing persons poster for Emily Rea, a 33-year-old West Glacier resident who went missing last July in the Hungry Horse Reservoir. (photo provided)