PA PA - Kathleen Kelly, 12, Springdale, 22 May 1981

[chaddylex]

I did. It just seemed odd that nobody was really looking for her. I work with kids and teens and I'd imagine they'd go crazy if their friend was gone for any period of time.

I remember even in 1st grade, my friend's parents got divorced and he was out of school for something like three weeks, staying with his grandparents, and we all thought he had disappeared, died or was really sick. We just had to trust our teacher to say that he was still alive. One day, he just came back to school. He didn't really have much to say about things and was really quiet at first, but he was back to his old self eventually. I actually still keep up with him to this day.

The same thing happened in fourth grade when a buddy of mine had pneumonia. We didn't know what was wrong with him. We even made a "missing" poster for him with a reward of a whopping one dollar (hey, we were in fourth grade, plus this was a long time ago when you could buy a few things at the school store for a nickel or a dime). He wound up showing up the next day.

As implied, my elementary days were a long time in the past. If we were that concerned back then, why weren't Kathleen's friends? If my grade school friends were still missing to this day, we'd probably have put together a Facebook page by now. I know there's one for Kathleen, but where are all the old friends? We saw old classmates come forward with Sharon Marshall and tell their stories and give their suspicions about FDF, etc...but where is the love for Kathleen here?

I posted above about my former Plant Manager growing up with Kathleen and her brother. He didn't say much except that they lived at the bottom of the hill near the "tracks and river" and it wasn't a nice area. I just asked him a few weeks ago to elaborate (his last day with our company was today , so I can't ask him anything else) - but he just said it doesn't think her home life was real good but doesn't remember a lot about her disappearance, he said he was a teenager and didn't pay that much attention. - so that is the only person other than her family that I know has said anything about her. It would be neat to know more. If she frequented the skating rink (like i did in the 80's) I imagine she went with friends there that maybe knew her story. I wish more would come foward.

 

[MacPlus512]

Ah yes, I can confirm that in that area, the tracks are the dividing line between the OK and bad areas of town. Some of the areas near there are still bad ~40 years later.

I saw post on Facebook from a family member who calls herself a "great niece" (I'm assuming of the parents) and apparently the home life has some things so bad they didn't want to discuss because of some folks still being alive. I saved the post but won't post it here out of respect for their privacy (though it's easy to find if you search for Kathleen Kelly being missing on FB).

 

[chaddylex]

Ah yes, I can confirm that in that area, the tracks are the dividing line between the OK and bad areas of town. Some of the areas near there are still bad ~40 years later.

I saw post on Facebook from a family member who calls herself a "great niece" (I'm assuming of the parents) and apparently the home life has some things so bad they didn't want to discuss because of some folks still being alive. I saved the post but won't post it here out of respect for their privacy (though it's easy to find if you search for Kathleen Kelly being missing on FB).

I just searched FB and saw the nieces comment.(I follow that FB group and didn't even see Kathleen's case come up a few weeks ago) I really wish we knew more, so sad.

 

[Mysteries1974]

Have you seen this child? Kathleen Kelly
Kathleen's photo is shown age-progressed to 52 years. She was last seen at the age of 12 getting into a friend's car near her home in Springdale, Pennsylvania. She was wearing a gold cross necklace, but it is unknown what clothing she was wearing.

 

[chaddylex]

Have you seen this child? Kathleen Kelly
Kathleen's photo is shown age-progressed to 52 years. She was last seen at the age of 12 getting into a friend's car near her home in Springdale, Pennsylvania. She was wearing a gold cross necklace, but it is unknown what clothing she was wearing.
View attachment 325130

This is the first time I have ever heard that Kathleen was last seen getting into a friend's car. Who saw her and who was the friend?

This is the info that I have only seen - now what is posted above has me very curious.

Kathleen was last seen on May 22, 1981. That day she went to the Ches-A-Rena skating rink in Cheswick, Pennsylvania with her brother-in-law and her nieces and nephews, who were close to Kathleen's age. Kathleen's brother-in-law and her sister, Judy Stanko, who was over twenty years older than Kathleen, both worked at the rink.

At some point during the day, Kathleen got bored, left the Ches-A-Rena and walked eight blocks to her sister's home, where Stanko was home alone with her infant daughter. They spoke for about an hour, then Kathleen decided to walk the six blocks to own home in Springdale, Pennsylvania.

Stanko asked if she was sure she wanted to walk, but Kathleen said she would be fine, and left. Stanko felt her sister was being evasive and may have had plans to do something else that evening. Kathleen never arrived home and has never been heard from again.

Kathleen's niece Kimberly Robertson was about four years older than Kathleen, and the girls were good friends. Robertson believe Kathleen was not abducted but left on purpose and did not plan to return. She said there were unspecified problems in Kathleen's home at the time, and she thought her aunt had run away to avoid them. The police also treated the case as a runaway from the onset and did not seriously investigate at the time.

 

[MadMcGoo]

Kathleen Kelly – The Charley Project

Date of birth (February 20, 1969) and age progression photo added.

 

[chaddylex]

Keystone Cold Cases just released an episode about Kathleen's disappearance

Listen Now | Keystone Cold Cases

www.kccpod.com

Kathleen Kelly was a daughter, sister, aunt, and friend. She grew up in some troublesome circumstances, but by the time she was 12 she was very independent, yet of course still loved her time with friends. One day, after going to a skating rink with some of her favorite people, she left and walked to her sister’s house. After leaving her sister’s house, she was never seen again. Listen as Sarah tells the story and discusses theories with Chelsea and Grace. Sources, photos, and additional information available at kccpod.com

 

[chaddylex]

Keystone Cold Cases has an updated episode with some information they received from a family member about Kathleen's disappearance.

According to Kathleen's relative, Kathleen's mother was an alcoholic and her story about Kathleen disappearing was never the same. She also believes that Kathleen went missing in 1980, not in May 1981.

Another relative believes Kathleen's body could be left in an abandon coal mine nearby. They also know that they might know who is responsible for her disappearance, but don't have enough proof.

They are hoping that they will have some traction in the case soon and it will be solved. More on the podcast.

Listen Now | Keystone Cold Cases

www.kccpod.com

What would you do if you found two bodies in the road at 2am? Today we stick in Pittsburgh for one more week as Sarah shares details with Chelsea and Grace as they discuss the baffling unsolved deaths of Shawn Baur and Scott Fosnaught. When the two 15 year olds left their friends house at 1am on a summer night in 2002, nobody expected to find only their bodies, and no clues, mere hours later. Listen for the details. Then, stick around for a case update. As family members provide answers to our questions, we bring them to you as updates. This week we provide updates for Kathy Kelly’s case. Sources and information can be found at kccpod.com