Found Deceased PA - Janet Walsh 70, last seen @church, missed date w/daughter, veh missing, Shaler Twp, 20 Jan 2020

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What kind of therapy was Janet receiving? Her NamUs page indicates that she uses a cane or walker due to limited mobility which makes me think it was physical therapy, but perhaps it was grief counseling or something else?

Also, her NamUs page shows Date of Last Contact as January 20. Is that an error or did she have contact with someone on the 20th?

She had lunch with her daughter and son-in-law on the 19th. I presume that was prior to her attending church since that is where she was reportedly last seen. So, did she attend an evening church service? If so, it may have been dark when she headed home.

The church is only a 1/2 mile from her home: Bethlehem Lutheran Church to 108 Dolores Dr, Pittsburgh, PA 15223 - Google Maps

Shower used on the 20th - wet washcloths, any signs that she was home that day? Did she have pets? Did she take any medications? If so, were they able to determine she took evening doses on the 19th and/or morning doses on the 20th? Did she have her phone at church?

She was making dinner for her daughter on the 20th.
  • Did she run to the store after church on the 19th?
  • Did she make it home on the 19th?
  • If so, did she go out for groceries (or anything else) on the 20th?
  • Did LE pull video from stores she was known to frequent for those days?
  • Grocery Stores near 108 Dolores Drive, Shaler PA
She has a Trax LT which looks like it doesn't have OnStar. Is that correct? I am not a car person. 2018 Chevrolet Trax Catalog

MOO
 
My question is did something happen to upset Janet? Were the impending holidays causing upset with the loss of her husband the year prior? Was there a sermon or something said at church that opened up an emotional wound?
 
Gameman said:
I have to go back to old articles to find her church. I know she had involvement. Just knowing things like her usual grocery store, the main family or friend she would visit, and her church location pretty much covers things most people would do in a week. As someone else said, most things are close so there isn't much reason to go far. If, for example, she had a someone she often visited up Route 28 or something, that change the perspective on everything.
Click to expand...

Agreed, this would be immensely helpful! Also, the article from Feb. '20 that PommyMommy linked to said Janet was looking forward to starting volunteer work. What type of volunteering? Many volunteer jobs have the worker out on the road: picking up donations for a food pantry from local stores, visiting shut-ins, delivering meals, etc. Bethlehem Evangelical Lutheran Church (belc.org) runs an impressive amount of ministries, AKA volunteer opportunities, many of which apparently involve driving. Again, depending on the type of volunteering she did, could she have been headed out to pick up something for one of these charitable efforts and been in an accident?
 
.

Keep Searching -- Two Years

Mysterious Disappearance Of 70-Year-Old Janet Walsh From Shaler Remains Unsolved 2 Years Later

272194531_242544548055755_5887031731104245960_n.jpg

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Last edited:
Has everyone heard of the YouTube channel Adventures with Purpose? They have made the news a lot lately, but just in case you haven't seen them, they are a group of scuba divers who just solved their 17th missing person case since starting in 2019. It's actually shocking how many times police and family have a strong suspicion of the body of water that someone's car may be in, but the red tape and costs of authorities searching is just immense. It seems like law enforcement really welcomes them because they work together but are able to expedite the process. Anyway, I was just watching another video from Chaos Divers. They were in Steubenville counting car upon car in the river bottom there. All of those cars just sitting, and they may never be brought up. A lot may be stolen and ditched, but some may not. I never realized how common it is or that people can go into rivers and lakes in metropolitan areas and still not be looked for.
 
KDKA news report (video) today/tonight about Janet
Disappearance Of Janet Walsh Remains Unsolved 2 Years Later

Slightly edited print version:
The car has not been spotted on license plate readers or found at any local car lots. The car’s GPS tracker is also off the grid.

“That’s telling us that it was somehow disconnected or it’s somewhere where there’s no satellite availability,” the chief said. “It could be in a body of water.”

Investigators have scoured the Allegheny River in nearby areas using sonar and dive teams, but nothing has been found.
Mysterious Disappearance Of 70-Year-Old Janet Walsh From Shaler Remains Unsolved 2 Years Later
 
PommyMommy said:
In two years they haven't even located her vehicle. So puzzling. MOO
Click to expand...

My bet would be a body of water! Time to call Adventures with A Purpose! They have recently had a lot of success here in Tennessee!

Seeing that Janet is still missing really makes me sad! She looked like such a kind friendly person in the pictures I have seen of her!
 
cutter99 said:
My bet would be a body of water! Time to call Adventures with A Purpose! They have recently had a lot of success here in Tennessee!

Seeing that Janet is still missing really makes me sad! She looked like such a kind friendly person in the pictures I have seen of her!
Click to expand...
I agree! They've done some amazing work in many cases. But, where do they start? ie: Where would she have gone into the river? MOO
 
PommyMommy said:
I agree! They've done some amazing work in many cases. But, where do they start? ie: Where would she have gone into the river? MOO
Click to expand...

Exactly. And really, which river? The Allegheny may be the most likely (and has been searched extensively) but there are three rivers that meet at The Point in Pittsburgh. For all we know, she could have ended up in either the Monongahela or Ohio rivers.
Google Maps
 
I remember reading something about Janet possibly having a cold or something, and it was first thought she may have run out to quickly pick up some medication. Maybe that is why her phone was left at home- she thought she’d run out quickly before her daughter came to dinner, and would not be gone long.

If any of that is possibly true, I would look to the nearest stores or pharmacies, and start with water on those routes.
 
cutter99 said:
I remember reading something about Janet possibly having a cold or something, and it was first thought she may have run out to quickly pick up some medication. Maybe that is why her phone was left at home- she thought she’d run out quickly before her daughter came to dinner, and would not be gone long.

If any of that is possibly true, I would look to the nearest stores or pharmacies, and start with water on those routes.
Click to expand...
Janet lived a stone's throw from the drugstore, two Rite Aids on the same boulevard. Even if she went down to one of the grocery stores over the hill (Shop n Save or Giant Eagle further up), there isn't any water big enough to go into on any of the routes. My guess would be the Allegheny as well, but I think she probably went in intentionally.
Also, I wish we knew if she had a sister or where she grew up at. If she was familiar with Bellevue or the towns along the Ohio River, there might almost be more places to go in unnoticed.
 
Here is another possibility.

I also read somewhere that Janet’s daughter was supposed to have dinner with her the day she was reported missing. When her daughter arrived at the house, the ingredients for dinner were sitting out, as if Janet were getting ready to prepare the meal.

Did Janet run out to pick up a missing ingredient?

Judging by a Google map, there are plenty of stores close to Janet’s home. I would also be looking at water near stores.

Water doesn’t necessarily mean just rivers. What about retention ponds, smaller bodies of water, etc.?
 
This family went missing in the Nashville area about 10 days before they were found. The accident was thought to have happened during a snow/ice event based on cell phone data, debt/credit card usage, etc. They were not found until cell phone data became available, and it was still hard for LE to find the wreckage.

THP: Missing family of three found dead off I-840 in Williamson County

Could something similar have happened to Janet?
 
Gameman said:
Has everyone heard of the YouTube channel Adventures with Purpose? They have made the news a lot lately, but just in case you haven't seen them, they are a group of scuba divers who just solved their 17th missing person case since starting in 2019. It's actually shocking how many times police and family have a strong suspicion of the body of water that someone's car may be in, but the red tape and costs of authorities searching is just immense. It seems like law enforcement really welcomes them because they work together but are able to expedite the process. Anyway, I was just watching another video from Chaos Divers. They were in Steubenville counting car upon car in the river bottom there. All of those cars just sitting, and they may never be brought up. A lot may be stolen and ditched, but some may not. I never realized how common it is or that people can go into rivers and lakes in metropolitan areas and still not be looked for.
Click to expand...
I've never heard of them ( I live in PA) I googled and their cause was to clean up garbage in water and helped with all of these cases. I'm impressed!
 
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