NC - Mom of 3 who vanished 24 years ago while Christmas shopping found ‘alive and well’.

[stormymama]

I just can’t understand how she was able to live off the grid for 24 years. Did she work? Did she ever go to the doctor? Fake ID and fake name?

 

[lisette]

I just can’t understand how she was able to live off the grid for 24 years. Did she work? Did she ever go to the doctor? Fake ID and fake name?

And so close… What about her car? Renewing registration, etc. Wonder if she had help like that woman from Kentucky that was found not long ago.

 

[K9Enzo]

Surely she didn't run away from her family just to hide from a DWI charge?!

Her daughter speculated about this when she appeared on The Vanished Podcast (WS approved) back in 2018. It didn’t seem to be a major focus of her comments, but she did bring it up.

IIRC the daughter that spoke in the episode was 14 when her mom disappeared in 2001. The daughter came across as super kind and sincere in the episode. IMO

EPISODE 146: Michele Lyn Hundley Smith — The Vanished Podcast

At 8:30 PM on December 9th, 2001, 38 year-old mother of three, Michele Lyn Hundley Smith, told her family that she was going Christmas shopping. She left the home in Stoneville, North Carolina in her green, 1995 Pontiac Trans Sport van with the North Carolina license plate “ROK-N-ON." She was h

www.thevanishedpodcast.com

 

[musicaljoke]

Who knows? She may have.

Here's a story from a local (to her) news station. I realize mugshots are not meant to be photogenic, but she looks like she's had a hard life in the meantime.

OOPS, WRONG LINK!

I wonder if the photo on the left might have been taken some time earlier than 2001. It appears as though she is showing off her engagement ring.

If the photo on the left was taken earlier than the time of her disappearance, then perhaps the one on the right is just showing a picture of the woman who is now thirty or forty years older.

 

[imstilla.grandma]

The North Carolina daughter who has spent her whole life trying to find the mom who abandoned her 24 years ago reveals she’s “forgiven” her wayward parent after she finally resurfaced this week

“My daughter is forgiving me. We are in contact, so leave me alone,” she told The Post from her trailer in a tiny town in Robeson County.

Exclusive | Daughter of missing NC mom has forgiven her for running away from her young kids 24 year ago, pal reveals

Michele Hundley Smith, now 62, disappeared without a trace in 2001.

nypost.com

"She applied for service that captured that information and alerted us," Page said. "And so again, information sharing, collaboration with local state and federal authorities, and information services working with our national database, we were able to get that information in a timely manner and act on it."

'That piece of the puzzle came through': Rockingham County sheriff speaks about missing woman found alive after 24 years

Michele Hundley Smith, missing since 2001, was found alive and taken into custody in Robeson County for a 2001 DWI charge.

www.wxii12.com

 

[fsngruv]

I wonder if the photo on the left might have been taken some time earlier than 2001. It appears as though she is showing off her engagement ring.

If the photo on the left was taken earlier than the time of her disappearance, then perhaps the one on the right is just showing a picture of the woman who is now thirty or forty years older.

It appears to be a glamour shot, they were very popular in the 90's, and they came with with a full face of make up and over the top hair, not necessarily the day to day hair and make up a person would normally have.

 

[MelmothTheLost]

It appears to be a glamour shot, they were very popular in the 90's, and they came with with a full face of make up and over the top hair, not necessarily the day to day hair and make up a person would normally have.

It's interesting that you describe that as a "glamour shot", as in the UK "glamour" photography was essentially boudoir material - women in sexy lingerie draped across beds and chaises longues and pouting at the camera.

 

[fsngruv]

It's interesting that you describe that as a "glamour shot", as in the UK "glamour" photography was essentially boudoir material - women in sexy lingerie draped across beds and chaises longues and pouting at the camera.

Super interesting. We have those here in the US too. As a child of the 80's nearly everyone I knew had a glamour shot with teased hair, full eye liner and a jean jacket off the shoulder, I think I had a every intention of getting one when I was older but they seemed to be less trendy or cool when I got old enough. I googled it and got this answer, hope it helps!

"Glamour Shots in the 1990s were a massive, mall-based cultural phenomenon offering makeovers and professional photoshoots to make everyday people feel like celebrities. Known for, high-volume hair, heavy makeup, and props like hats or pearls, these, sessions often created a "cringe-worthy" yet nostalgic look, characterized by feathered hair and soft-focus lenses.
www.erinrosephoto.com
The Experience: Customers received full makeovers, including dramatic hair styling (teased/big hair) and heavy makeup application (dark mascara, intense blush).
Style & Trends: Outfits frequently included sequins, metallic fabrics, cowboy hats, boa feathers, and velvet. Posing was theatrical, aiming to emulate supermodels or movie stars.
Peak Popularity: Founded in 1988, the chain peaked in the mid-90s with over 350 locations, often located in shopping malls.
Legacy: While often considered "cringe" today, these portraits are cherished as a unique time capsule of 90s fashion and a pre-filter era of self-expression. "

Also from wiki... Which also describes the shots you were referencing.
"In the late 20th century, the aesthetics of glamour photography became accessible to the general public through mall-based studio franchises. The most prominent of these, Glamour Shots, was founded in 1988 by Jack Counts Jr. and expanded to hundreds of locations across the United States during the 1990s.
These studios democratized the celebrity image by offering "makeovers" that involved teased hairstyles, heavy makeup, and the loan of theatrical props such as feather boas, sequined jackets, and cowboy hats. The resulting images were typically high-contrast or soft-focus portraits intended to make everyday subjects resemble television or movie stars of the era. By the late 2000s, changing fashion trends and the rise of personal digital photography led to a sharp decline in the popularity of these studios. The specific aesthetic of this era, often referred to as "mall glamour", has since become a subject of nostalgic parody in popular culture."

Glamour photography - Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org

 

[stormymama]

Yep, the pic of Michele that is everywhere is definitely a Glamour Shot. All the rage in early-mid 90s.

(I had some done. Jean jacket with popped collar, and even had some feathers.)

 

[airportwoman]

I wonder if the photo on the left might have been taken some time earlier than 2001. It appears as though she is showing off her engagement ring.

If the photo on the left was taken earlier than the time of her disappearance, then perhaps the one on the right is just showing a picture of the woman who is now thirty or forty years older.

It looked like some version of a Glamour Shot, which were very popular in the 1990s. Most likely, it was also the picture the family released to the press when she went missing.

 

[LadyL]

I wonder if she followed her children's lives through their social media pages. I wonder if she ever thought about reuniting with them.

 

[MelmothTheLost]

Super interesting. We have those here in the US too. As a child of the 80's nearly everyone I knew had a glamour shot with teased hair, full eye liner and a jean jacket off the shoulder, I think I had a every intention of getting one when I was older but they seemed to be less trendy or cool when I got old enough. I googled it and got this answer, hope it helps!

"Glamour Shots in the 1990s were a massive, mall-based cultural phenomenon offering makeovers and professional photoshoots to make everyday people feel like celebrities. Known for, high-volume hair, heavy makeup, and props like hats or pearls, these, sessions often created a "cringe-worthy" yet nostalgic look, characterized by feathered hair and soft-focus lenses.

Thanks - this is interesting from a cultural differences point of view. As someone who was involved in photography and a member of a number of camera clubs in the 1980s and 1990s, I really don't recall anything similar to the specific outlets in shopping malls/centres to what you describe. What you're describing sounds like the sort of portrait photography that many UK high street professional photo studios would offer, especially if they also did a lot of wedding photography. The main portrait aesthetics in the UK at that time were either big-hair-disco-glitter-blue-eyeshadow or Laura-Ashley-country-house-horses-and-wellies-rural-idyll rather than a film or Hollywood inspiration.

From a club point of view, all clubs had regular model sessions where the club's own lighting, backgrounds and props were set up for portrait and boudoir nights, with one or more hired models who also brought her own costumes and props. Club model nights were especially popular because in those days studio lighting rigs were too expensive for most amateurs even if they had somewhere to set it up. And yes - there were lots of soft focus techniques because of the need to flatter in the days before digital filtering/editing/enhancement of less than perfect faces, including soft focus filters, vaseline on plain filters and tights stretched and taped over the end of the lens.

 

[MrsWatson]

Pure speculation.

Maybe she left because the "domestic issues" were her drinking. She didn't want to expose her children to growing up with an alcoholic. Getting fired for drinking on the job is not the sign of a healthy stable person, imo.

 

[lisette]

Pure speculation.

Maybe she left because the "domestic issues" were her drinking. She didn't want to expose her children to growing up with an alcoholic. Getting fired for drinking on the job is not the sign of a healthy stable person, imo.

I was thinking the same thing. It’s a shame that some are smearing the father‘s name, when the issues could have very well been hers. The children have stood by their father, and I think that says a lot.JMO

 

[justbeachy]

I'm wondering if the "domestic issues" were based on her possible drinking problem (DUI, alleged firing from job for drinking) and she felt that the kids were better off without her around. Maybe in her mind she was protecting them by leaving. I can absolutely see that someone with potential alcoholism and guilt from that could convince themselves that this was the best solution for everyone. Huge speculation on my part, but thoughts like, "Everyone would be better off if I wasn't around" can be strong enough to make people do things that aren't rational to those of us without those thoughts. IMO MOO

 

[musicaljoke]

I'm wondering if the "domestic issues" were based on her possible drinking problem (DUI, alleged firing from job for drinking) and she felt that the kids were better off without her around. Maybe in her mind she was protecting them by leaving. I can absolutely see that someone with potential alcoholism and guilt from that could convince themselves that this was the best solution for everyone. Huge speculation on my part, but thoughts like, "Everyone would be better off if I wasn't around" can be strong enough to make people do things that aren't rational to those of us without those thoughts. IMO MOO

Do alcoholics think like that? Do they look out for the best interests of those in their families?

I like your theory because it casts her actions in a better light than my theory,
I believe alcoholics only care about their next drink. Therefore they drive while drunk, endangering others, or drink on the job, or drive away from their families just before Christmas so they can load up in peace.

 

[CityKid]

Per the People story, she went shopping on December 9 and the husband reported her missing on December 31. I’d love to know how the husband explained that. Must’ve been a very weird Christmas. MOO

 

[GatorsNorth]

She was only 2 1/2 hours away from where she left! Wow!

I’m trying to wrap my head around the fact that she never ran into anyone she knew!

 

[K9Enzo]

Interactive timeline | What to know about Michele Hundley Smith; from her disappearance to her arrest

Michele Hundley Smith was located on Feb 20, alive and well in North Carolina, after being reported missing in 2001.

www.wxii12.com

 

[GatorsNorth]

It's interesting that you describe that as a "glamour shot", as in the UK "glamour" photography was essentially boudoir material - women in sexy lingerie draped across beds and chaises longues and pouting at the camera.

I have to vote with @fsngruv on this one. This is a typical glamor shot from the US in that era. Everyone I knew had one, including me lol.