68 replies to this topic

[Denise]

read more here http://www.canada.co...0a-001976ea9933

Hunt for daughter blocked at border
Mother's trip stopped over old conviction

Lena Sin, The Province
Published: Sunday, June 03, 2007

Glendene Grant should have been in Las Vegas last week, meeting with investigators about her missing daughter, whom she fears fell prey to human traffickers.

Instead, she's at home in Kamloops after being denied entry to the U.S. over a 21-year-old drug conviction.

"I haven't unpacked my bags. I have to get back down there," Grant said through tears on Friday.

Since Grant's daughter, Jessie Foster, went missing in Las Vegas more than a year ago, the Kamloops mother has made three trips to the city to search for her daughter.

[Denise]

read more here http://www.klas-tv.c...y.asp?S=6632383

Family of Missing Woman Increases Reward

June 8, 2007 01:43 PM CDT

The family of missing Jessie Foster of North Las Vegas has increased the reward they are offering for information about her whereabouts to $10,000. They are making the offer through Crime Stoppers of Nevada for information about her disappearance.

Officials say Foster, 23, hasn't been heard from since a phoning her sister March 28.

They say she didn't indicate anything was wrong -- but that she usually keeps in contact with her family in Canada.

[Denise]

read more here http://www.kvbc.com/...632182&nav=15MV

Family offering $10,000 in missing North Las Vegas woman case

June 8, 2007 01:02 PM CDT

The family of a missing North Las Vegas woman has posted a $10,000 reward through Crime Stoppers of Nevada for information about her disappearance. Officials say 23 year old Jessie Foster hasn't been heard from since a phoning her sister March 28th.

[Kelly]

                                                                                                                                   XX
www.lasvegascitylife.com/articles/2007/06/07/news/shrapnel/iq_14772606.txt
Mother of missing girl denied access to Vegas
6/7/07

What's worse than not knowing the whereabouts of your missing daughter? According to Canadian Glendene Grant, whose daughter disappeared from Las Vegas in March 2006, being denied entry into the United States to search for her.

On May 29, Grant was denied entry into the States at the Vancouver International Airport. She had traveled to the country to search for her daughter, Jessie Foster, three times previously without incident.

Read the rest of the article at the link above.

For more information on Jessie Foster, visit www.jessiefoster.ca.

[Kelly]

A letter written by Jessica's mother, Glendene, and posted with permission:

"My sweet, dear, wonderful Jessie.

Hi baby, this is Mom.  I just wanted to let you know how much I miss you and how hard we are working to find you and bring you home.  I know how scared you must be and how worried you are about us worrying about you.  Do not think about that, keep your thoughts on staying strong and safe, no NOT put yourself in any more danger, be smart.  We are strong and we are not stopping.  With all my heart and soul I feel you are alive and out there, somewhere, needing to be found and rescued.  We will do that. 
 
Jessie, I also want you to know that we know what you have been through.  We know what was happening in Vegas.  Do NOT blame yourself or think that you need to be forgiven for ANYTHING.  You are a VICTIM, even if you think you could have left, you were not able to; your being a victim of human trafficking is proof of that.  You were trying to come home to Canada and someone stopped you. 
 
Your story has been out there, baby.  Not as much as I want it to be, but your story has been on the Geraldo at Large show, the Maury Povich show and the Montel Williams show, plus the Dr. Phil show contacted me about doing a show on your disappearance in August. I am hopeful for that.  The way we will get you back is by letting North America and the rest of the world know you are missing and you are wanted back so very much. 

Jessie, I have missed 2 of your birthdays and a lot of other special occasions and holidays, plus all the things that have happened in the 16 months since you have been missing.  Many wonderful things have happened to family and friends, plus some terrible things. 
 
Some of the good things are: Jennee and her boyfriend Drew are going to have a baby in January!!  You will be an auntie to your baby sister's baby!  And Willie is a daddy!!  Him and Pam had a beautiful baby girl Audrey Elizabeth Grant on June 21st.  And Vicki-Sue & Gord had a baby boy, Braedon on Kalysta's 6th birthday in December and they are getting married in September.  Vicki is so very happy.  And uncle Jimmie and his fiancee Colette had a baby girl on Valentines day this year, little Piper, and they are getting married next year.  Plus Jesse K & his girlfriend Jill had a baby girl this year, Cole & Amy are having a baby girl in November!  Jodie & Michael are having a baby and Alisha & Reg had another baby girl this year and they are getting married!  James Richardson got married to his long time girlfriend on May 19/07 and they are expecting a baby boy soon.  And Vickie Nesbitt got married May 20/06, to Brad Lyons; she has been with him for several years.  So she is Vickie Lyons now!!  I know there have been other good things but my mind is just not able to remember them all right now. 
 
Some of the terrible things that have happened are: Mark Fraser died on July 11/06, one of the saddest days.  He was on his Harley and crashed on July 5, the day after Matt's 19th birthday.  He was at Mara Lake on holidays and was in the hospital in Kamloops where he died of massive head injuries.  Matt is holding up, but you know how close he was to his dad.  My cousin Linda also passed away April 23/07; she is auntie Billie's oldest daughter (and Roger's sister, who died 17 months before she did, both from cancer).  Linda did 2 fundraiser dinners to raise money for your search; she was a wonderful cook and she planned the Roast Beef and the Turkey dinners and cooked with the help of many others.  They were both very successful.  Also, Amber Bard died.  Last year she took her own life.  Amber's mom LeaAnn was raising her daughter, Emily after that when she (LeaAnn) suddenly and tragically died last month (June 5/07).  Also last month, on June 29/07, Ted Whitmore's daddy, Fred passed away.  Earlier this year, my uncle Ray Preston passed away (in January) and last year, Jesse & Cole's uncle Pokey Kwasnica died (April 25/06). 

Also, Tigger died, after what appeared to be an attack by a dog, but we do not know for sure, all we know, is she was hurt very badly and the vet did not hold out much hope for her recovery, short of several thousand dollars in fees - and that was not even a guarantee...so we had to put her down.  Now we do not have Bootsy or Tiggy any more.  They are both in a grave out back by the trampoline.
 

Like the good things, I know there are other terrible things that have happened, but again, my mind cannot think of them all right now. 
 
Also, Katie & Peter broke up last month.  Katie is doing well.  She moved back home, but she is moving out with Heather in September.  She is working 2 jobs, part-time at Shopper's Drug Mart and she is back at Convergys training to work in the same project as me.  And Crystal & Aaron got back together.  They were living here with us from March till the middle of June, when they moved back to Alberta for work.  Jim & I are doing well.  We miss you lots and Jim is having a hard time taking care of me while I go through this ordeal, but thank God for him. 
 
Your dad is having such a hard time with all of this.  He just does not know what to do or what to think.  He is doing better now, but I have been worried about him.  After all, he only has you and Crystal, of course he has step daughters and he knows you have your other sisters, but you guys are his and he misses you so much.  Tracy is taking care of things of course.  Being the mom and grandma to all the kids, she is a strong woman 
 
You have such a strong, huge support system, Jess.  Your friends all miss you and are so worried and supportive to us.  Shauna is engaged, Cindy got married, Jessi T had another baby, Sri is doing great. She is moving to Australia (plus she put on a fundraiser in Calgary at Jameson's Irish Pub ( it very successful, too), Brandy has helped put on a fundraiser in Edmonton with Kat (I will tell you all about Kat, she is wonderful) and put one on in Calgary with Dizzy....she has been so great.  There are so many others to tell you about, but that would take a book. 

Jessie, remember, we will find you, love Mom. xoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxox
 
I have one more thing to say, but this is not to Jessie, this is to whoever took her, or has her, or knows where she is.  PLEASE, you have to understand that Jessie is loved, wanted, missed and needed back by her family and friends.  We NEED her.  She is part of us and without here there is a huge, huge hole.  It is unbelievable how big of a hole such a tiny girl can make when she is not there.  When she is missing from her family, from her place in our lives where she belongs.  GIVE HER BACK TO US.  Give her back to me.  I am her mommy and I need my baby back, PLEASE.  Jessie is a wonderful person with a huge heart and you do not need her like we do.  We promise that if someone contacts us with information about Jessie's whereabouts we will keep it confidential and you will not be involved if you choose not to be. Contact Crime Stoppers or the North Las Vegas Police or even call your local police agency and they can get the information to us. 

Sincerely,
Glendene Grant, mother of endangered missing JESSIE FOSTER."

[Kelly]

read more here http://www.edmontons...395398-sun.html

Gals told 'don't go' to work in Vegas
Alberta woman's disappearance now looks like case of human trafficking

By GLENN KAUTH, SUN MEDIA
8/5/07

Carol-Lynn Strachan shudders whenever she hears of Edmonton prostitutes going to work in Las Vegas.

"I tell them don't go, and find out who you're working for," said Strachan, a local sex-trade advocate.

Strachan's concern is the rise in human-trafficking cases in the Las Vegas sex trade.

Just recently, authorities there revealed they believe Jessie Foster, an Alberta woman missing since March 2006, is the victim of a possible trafficking ring.

[Kelly]

Project Jason's Voices for the Missing: Audio Interviews presents an interview with Glendene Grant, Jessica's mother.

She won't be stopped in the quest to find her missing daughter, despite the frightening theory about her disappearance.

Part 1: http://www.projectja...FosterPart1.mp3
Part 2: http://www.projectja...FosterPart2.mp3

[Kelly]

read more here http://www.edmontons...11/4648414.html

Social networking sites used for human-trafficking
Hundreds of Albertans get targeted each year

By ANDREW HANON, SUN MEDIA
11/11/07

City cops are investigating two suspected human-trafficking rings believed to be part of an international network that enslaves hundreds of young Albertans each year, many of whom are forced into the sex trade in Las Vegas.

Staff Sgt. Kevin Galvin, head of the Edmonton police organized crime and gang units, said because the investigations are still underway, he wouldnt give specific details.

He said that while human-trafficking criminal enterprises have operated in Western Canada for at least 20 years  and for decades longer in central Canada  theyre more sophisticated than ever before.

They do most of their recruiting on social networking websites like Facebook and MySpace, choosing nave or vulnerable victims for grooming? who are right around 18 years old in order to avoid detection by authorities looking for predators after underage kids.

[Kelly]

read more here http://www.bclocalne...s/12287736.html

Monday, 12/10/2007 1:47 am

Supporting search for Jessie

By Cassidy Olivier

David Miller knows how good it feels when the community shows its support for a worthy cause.

That is why the owner of MD Auto Detailing decided to help out Glendene Grant, one of his longtime friends, by organizing a fundraiser in support of the Jessie Foster trust.

Foster, the 23-year-old daughter of Grant, went missing in March 2006 while living in Las Vegas.

While friends and family havent heard from her since, many, including Grant, believe she fell victim to a human-trafficking ring.

[Kelly]

                                                                                                                                        XX
http://www.lvcitylif...iq_18477112.txt

Without a trace
Christmastime will be particularly cold for the hundreds of people whose loved ones have disappeared from Las Vegas

12/13/07

by MATT O'BRIEN

THIS CHRISTMAS WILL BE a particularly cold one for Maureen Reintjes. It will be her first Christmas unpacking the ornaments and decorating without her husband of 26 years, Jon Van Dyke.

Van Dyke kissed Reintjes goodbye the morning of May 19, 2005, and went to work at Citigroup financial services company on West Sahara Avenue. That afternoon, she got a call from Citigroup saying he never returned from lunch.

Read more at link above.

[Kelly]

read more here http://www.canada.co...f6-b1492d0d9c9c

Mom of missing daughter wants to speak with deported woman

Lena Sin, The Province
Published: Friday, December 21, 2007

A distressed Kamloops mom wants to hear from 22-year-old Yvonne Hubrechtsen -- one of the few people her daughter knew in Las Vegas before disappearing 21 months ago.

Jessie Foster, a former Boston Pizza waitress in Kamloops, arrived in Las Vegas in May 2005.

At the time, Hubrechtsen was one of the few friends her daughter talked about, according to mother Glendene Grant.

Jessie even gave her mother Hubrechtsen's phone number in case of emergencies.

[Denise]

read more here http://www.edmontons...738214-sun.html

Jessie remains mystery

By DANIEL MACISAAC, SUN MEDIA

Members of Jessie Foster's family say they're frustrated a woman who may have information on her disappearance seems to have slipped through the fingers of Canadian authorities.

Foster's mother Glendene Grant has been trying to speak to American Yvonne Hubrechtsen since her 23-year-old daughter went missing after being lured from Alberta to Las Vegas in May 2005, a suspected victim of a prostitution ring.

"This has haunted me," Grant said from her Kamloops, B.C., home. "Because when she first went down to Las Vegas in May 2005 I asked her, 'If anything happens to you or if you go missing, who can I call?' "

[Kelly]

read more here http://www.theglobea...y=jessie foster

Cash aims to spur response in missing-woman case
Family offers $50,000 reward with the hope of tracking down daughter who disappeared in Las Vegas nearly two years ago


CATHRYN ATKINSON
Special to The Globe and Mail
January 1, 2008

The family of a Kamloops woman who disappeared in Las Vegas almost two years ago is hoping a $50,000 reward for information on her whereabouts will trigger a response from those who knew her at the time she went missing.

Glendene Grant, the mother of 23-year-old Jessie Foster, said she hoped the money would create the sort of leads that will help recover her daughter. The reward had previously been $10,000.

Ms. Foster's parents reported her missing to police in North Las Vegas, where she had been living, shortly after she stopped contacting them in March, 2006. The family hired a private detective who, after a short search, gave them the devastating news that their daughter had been leading a double life by prostituting herself through a Las Vegas escort service.

[Kelly]

read more here http://www.bclocalne...s/17132121.html

Two years of anguish

March 30, 2008  

It's been two years since Jessie Foster disappeared. That's 104 weeks, 731 days and 17,544 hours.

For Glendene Grant of Kamloops, each second without her daughter has been torture but she is also fierce in her determination to find Jessie and bring her home.

March 29 marks two years since Jessie's daily phone calls, text messages and e-mails from Las Vegas to her family in Canada abruptly stopped and there are still no clues as to where the then-21-year-old could be after being lured by her boyfriend into the Nevada sex trade in May 2005.

As time goes on, we get stronger,Grant said of the family.

[Kelly]

The family has reported that the DNA results are in and that the woman found in Kilgore, TX is NOT Jessica Foster.

[Denise]

read more here http://www.theglobea...PStory/National

Mother relieved over DNA results
Tests show body found in Las Vegas not that of Kamloops woman

CATHRYN ATKINSON

Special to The Globe and Mail

April 15, 2008

The mother of missing Kamloops woman Jessie Foster, who disappeared in Las Vegas two years ago, says she is relieved to learn that her DNA did not match the remains of a woman found in Texas.

But Glendene Grant was angered by the fact that she was not told of the results by the North Las Vegas police, but by a Kamloops radio reporter pursuing the story.

"This isn't the first time it happened. [The reporter] told me he was the first person to hear outside the Texas police, but they should have told us first. I called North Las Vegas police and they confirmed it," she said.

[Kelly]

read more here http://investigation...il8/april8.html

The Missing - A Weekly Expose of Lost Souls Issue #8

4/2008

     
In this week's edition of "The Missing," we revisit the mysterious disappearance of Jessica Edith Louise Foster, a 21-year-old woman from Canada, who vanished from the streets of Las Vegas, Nevada in March 2006.

"Jessie was born in Calgary, AB, Canada on May 27, 1984.  She was the second daughter for Dwight Foster and myself," Jessie's mom, Glendene Grant, said in a recent email.  "On June 27, 1987, I moved back to Kamloops, BC, Canada, where I grew up and my parents still lived.  My mom & dad bought me the house I am still living in over 20 years later.