As the wind blew up the Alberni Inlet on Friday evening, and the sun set over Arbutus Ridge to the west, a crowd of nearly 100 people marked one year since Amber Manthorne disappeared.
A poster with a black and white photo of Manthorne with the motto “forever chasing sunsets” stood on an easel; around it Amber’s family and friends listened to music, laughed, hugged and shed a few tears too.
“Today marks one year without Amber,” said Cheryl Payne, who has been friends with Amber since junior high school. “One year since Amber last went to work. One year since (her mother) Lorraine had her last phone call from her daughter. One year since many children had their Auntie Chip in their lives.
“One year since Amber’s friends last heard her infectious laugh and (had) the pleasure of seeing her big, beautiful smile.”
READ: Hundreds of volunteers spend weekend searching for Amber Manthorne
Manthorne was reported missing on July 8, 2022; friends and family told Port Alberni RCMP they hadn’t heard from her since two days previously. Her car was found south of Nanaimo in the Cassidy area the next day. The Vancouver Island Integrated Major Crime Unit took over the case on July 12, 2022.
Despite large official and unofficial searches of Great Central Lake area—where Manthorne lived with her ex-boyfriend, Justin Hall—and the area where her white 2021 Jeep Compass was discovered, Manthorne was not found. Her friends dubbed the public group searching the logging roads ‘Amber’s Army.’
The case was covered by true crime podcaster Laura Palmer of Island Crime in Season 4: Finding Amber. Palmer usually handles cold cases, but because she lives in Port Alberni, Amber’s case hit closer to home than most, she explained. Palmer updated Season 4 with two new episodes released July 6.
Friday’s vigil focused on Amber, although there were some veiled references to something that happened earlier in the week: Justin Hall, thought to be the last person to see Amber before she went missing, died on July 4. His death raised many questions for those still looking for answers and closure over Amber’s disappearance.
Hall was never listed as a person of interest by RCMP in Manthorne’s disappearance.
Corporal Alex Bérubé with B.C. RCMP’s Island District said there are no updates to report on Manthorne’s disappearance. When asked if he could confirm Hall’s death, he said “Police can’t confirm nor will it release names of deceased individuals unless there is an investigational need for it.”
Nicole Malcomson, one of the people organizing the vigil, said the silence is difficult for friends and family. “The lack of official updates are unfortunate and frustrating but I could only hope there’s a rationale behind their strategy, and if it potentially impacts the case negatively by sharing, we have to respect it,” she said.
“We can only continue to hope that there’s a conclusion for her disappearance and she can be brought home to her waiting loved ones. But until then, we will continue to look for her and keep her memory alive in whatever positive ways we can.”
Payne and Malcomson, two of the vigils’ organizers, wanted to hold a moment of silence for Amber at 10:07 p.m.—which is the time when her last known text was sent. The wind had other plans, however, getting stronger as the sun slipped closer to the horizon. The moment was moved up, and concluded just as sun’s last rays dipped past the trees lining the ridge across the inlet.
“Life just isn’t the same without you here,” Payne said in a message to Amber. “I hope that one day we will have the answers as to what happened to you on that night and I want you to know that we will never stop looking for you and pressing for answers.
“I love you, my friend.”
susie.quinn@albernivalleynews.com
Like us on Facebook and follow us on Twitter