A Candle For Paige

Today marks the fifteenth anniversary of the disappearance of Paige Renkoski.  Paige disappeared on May 24, 1990, here in Livingston County.

I remember this well because although I lived in Pennsylvania at the time, I had been home for a visit at the time.  I'm not positive, but I think May 24, 1990, was a week-end.  I remember talking to my mom about it a lot since Paige was only a few years older than me and it was just plain weird for anyone to disappear in Livingston County.  Things like that just didn't happen there. This was coming on the heels of two other unsolved homicides in the area.  Very strange happenings for Livingston County.

Here are the facts of this still unsolved case.

Paige was a 30 year old substitute teacher from Okemos, Michigan.  She was five feet six inches tall, 125 pounds, with blue eyes and blonde hair.  She was pretty and had a great smile.  That day, she had dropped off her mother at Detroit Metro Airport and on the way back, had stopped to visit a friend in Canton Township.  After leaving her friend's, she stopped at a party store and bought a quart of beer.

She headed back to Okemos, eventually ending up on I- 96 going through Livingston County, a very heavily traveled highway. 

Her 1986 silver Oldsmobile Cutlass Calais was found idling on the westbound side of I-96.  There was no mechanical damage to her car, nor any body damage or a flat tire.  The car was running, the door was unlocked, the headlights on and her purse,  shoes and beer were still inside, undisturbed. The radio was still on.

There was no sign of a struggle and no sign of Paige.

After flooding the media with her picture in hopes of generating tips, local law enforcement came up with the following facts:

Paige's car was seen weaving in and out of traffic with an older burgandy minivan close behind.

She was spotted on the side of the expressway with a burgandy minivan parked close by, talking to two men. 

She was spotted throwing her hands up in the air gesturing and one of the men put his hand on her shoulder.

There was possibly a third man near or in the burgandy minivan.

One passerby in particular became concerned when he first saw Paige's car parked on the side of the expressway and saw her with these men at about 3:30 p.m.,  then saw her car, running but with no one inside, during his return trip at 7:30 p.m. 

Paige was engaged at the time of her disappearance, planning on getting married in November of 1990.  Although some friends and family members thought she had some concerns about her impeding marriage and her fiance, no one felt she would abandon the whole thing.  No runaway bride here.

She left a sizable sum in her bank account and it has never been touched.

She had an especially close relationship with her mother.

Out of the many tips that came in, law enforcement has identified two suspects, both from the Detroit area.  One was a juvenile at the time, seventeen years old, and the other is incarcerated right now due to a carjacking.  The juvenile, no longer a juvenile,  has failed a lie detector test regarding Paige and the other has refused interviews with law enforcement. 

Still, detectives are positive that this case can be solved.  Paige's body has never been found.  While this may be the fastest growing county in Michigan, there are still many places that are undeveloped, remote and undisturbed here.

Law enforcement believes that it was a random crime.  No stated motive.

Also of note, there are three unsolved abductions/homicides in this area from the same time frame.  Also considered to be random.

I wonder what would have made Paige pull over.  Did the men in the van indicate she had something wrong with her car?  Why would they have been following her?  An Olds Cutlass Calais, while a nice car, is certainly not flashy, especially not a 4 year old one.   In all the things I have read and heard about this case, there was nothing to indicate Paige would have voluntarily disappeared herself.  While she may have been having concerns about her upcoming marriage, no one indicated she was freaked out by it or unhappy.  More like normal Oh My God, I'm Getting Married concerns.  By all accounts, she was responsible and level headed. 

The local law enforcement seems hopeful that this will be solved. I don't think at this point anyone expects to find Paige alive and well in say, Costa Rica, but it would be nice to see justice done to those who snuffed out her life so prematurely.

I light a candle for Paige tonight and hope her family and friends know that she is not forgotten.

Comments

[Stacy]

You. Are. Awesome.

[Michelle]

Ditto. But don't get a big head from that comment or anything. Ha.

[Barbara]

Just surfed to your blog via Erin's World.

Cases like the one you have described are so frightening. Her family has to walk around with a hole in their hearts and no answers.
Almost 20 years ago a boy went missing from a city near where I live. He was 4 at the time. There has never been any solid leads. I can't imagine how his family carries on each day. It is heartbreaking.
http://www.childsearch.org/michael_dunahee.html

[Mark]

My wife and I were just wondering the other day what ever happened to the Paige Renkoski case. I stumbled upon your post while surfing for information. I had not heard about the 2 suspects. The story always haunted us. Like the post before me, I can't imagine the family's anguish. Your tribute to her was very sweet.

[Beth]

Living in Brighton, MI once considered a "safe" place to raise your children, this crime really touched my heart. How can this continue to happen? What can we do to stop all this madness? We have to keep ourselves safe and our children safe. I added your website to my favorites.

[Sandra]

I remember this case so well. It was my birthday, my 21st birthday, the day she disappeared. I traveled that same stretch everyday to school. I had a blow out and was stranded on the side of the road in the same place she vanished from just days later.

A few years after that I remember the billboard that was put up with her missing persons information and I teared up every single time I drove past it. I still wonder what happened to her and I will probably always have her image in my mind when I drive on I-96. I can't believe it was 15 years ago.

[Jen]

Thanks for writing about Paige. I just googled to see what happened to Paige; I remembered the story from so long ago. I was hoping so much that she was found. My cousin's friends in Florida are going through the same thing with their daughter. She a 24 yr old blond blue/green eys 5'8" wonderful young woman that just disappeared after leaving for work 2 weeks ago today. The website for more info is www.jenniferkesse.com
She lived alone in Orlando in a condo. I pray with all my heart that both these beautiful, smart, lovely women will be found.

[Derrick]

Nice Web site. But just wondering what ever happened to Dawn Spens from the Dr. Al Canty murder. I am an old classmate.

[jennifer mcclellan]

to Derrick,go on the masquerade blog,in lisa life and there is allot of info on dawn and the others involved in the case.What I want to know has anyone ever found out what happened to Karen Kresge?Forgive me if I have the name and spelling wrong,I was only a little girl at the time.I am talking about the man that owned K-Marts daughter,she vanished from a shopping mall.

[phyllis adams totten]

i went to okemos highschool with paige and we also grew up on the same street. i knew her and her family. i have always been haunted by this case. paige was so beautiful, she had a boyfriend in school and had her life planned out, she really was a doll. i was married and living on the east coast when she was last seen, but i've always wondered if the "suspects" from the detroit area you speak of, saw paige at the convenience store and followed her with intention to harm her. this is likely a crime of opportunity, i think the suspects saw her either at the store or on the highway and went after her. she was a single girl alone, with the kind of looks that any guy would notice, her abductor/murderer? sounds like the type of predetor who's ready to act when they see the 'victim' they want. i hope her family will ultimatly have the truth of what happend to paige, who is responsible, and where she is. in the meantime, paige is in my prayers.

[Tracy W.]

I first heard about this case from the book Unexplained Michigan Mysteries, by Gary Barfknecht. Ever since then I wonder what happened to her.

Could she have been weaving in and out of traffic because she was trying to get away from them? This was before cell phones were widely used.

To this day it's one of the most frightening cases of disappearances.

[Zack Lundberg]

I still have a hard time with this. I went to HS with Paige, and was in her sisters' class. I pray for all of you. I hope that something breaks in this case and the Renkoskis' will have some kind of closure, soon. Sheryl, think of you often. God bless you all.

[Wendy Sunstrum]

I was just thinking of Paige and didn't relize the aniversary of her dissapearence was this month. I often speak of her to my daughter and people at work. I had met Paige once or twice many many years ago but probably only a short time before she went missing. i also new her Mother. My heart just sinks every time i think of her and her family. I had heard several years ago that they had new leads in the case and perhaps had solved it then just as quickly as they had spoke of it i never heard another thing about it. this must have been the two men from Detroit that they were suspecting. hope some day they get them....God bless the family and I am praying for their closure to this horrific crime.

[Gail Johnson]

I babysat for Paige and her sisters when they lived in Lansing many years ago and a few times after they moved to Okemos. I was still living in Lansing when the notification of her missing first came out. I didn't remember hearing anything about if she had been found or of any supects in her abduction and then moved out of Lansing to the west coast in 94. I've always wondered what ever happened with this case and am sadden to hear nothing has been settled yet. My love and Prayers go out to Ardis and her sisters. I know her dad Karl passed away without ever knowing what happened to his daughter. I am keeping the family in my thoughts. God Bless you all.
Gail (Gross) Johnson