It’s been more than six weeks since 25-year-old Eli Wood went missing from his Kitchener home under suspicious circumstances.
Now, members of the community are planning a ground search this Sunday to look for clues into his disappearance.
Wood has not been seen by friends or family since a fire engulfed his home in Kitchener on Oct. 19. Wood had been living in a unit at the back of a house.
Investigators from the Waterloo Regional Police Service (WRPS) had said the fire was arson, that it was targeted and that foul play is suspected in Wood’s disappearance.
Wood is a student in the master of social work program at Wilfrid Laurier University. He’s four feet 10 inches tall and part of the 2SLGBTQ+ community.
Meghan Mathieson doesn’t know Wood personally but joined a Facebook group that has been discussing Wood’s disappearance.
She asked if anyone has thought of organizing a search party and that garnered a lot of interest from other members of the group.
“Being a parent myself, you wake up every morning hoping that you’re going to see your child. And she [Wood’s mother] wakes up every morning, looking for answers and to keep hearing, ‘Sorry, we don’t have any new leads’ or ‘There’s no new information we can give you.’ At what point does she start losing hope?” Mathieson asked.
“We need to bring hope back to this mother. We need to show her that the community stands behind Eli. Like we want answers just as much as she does.”
Police told CBC News there are no new updates they could provide but work on the case continues.
The Waterloo Regional Police Service said in a statement on Thursday that they recognize the public’s “significant” interest in this case, police are limited in the information they can share to protect the integrity of the investigation.
“We want to assure the public that this is a very active and ongoing investigation, and our family liaison officer is in daily contact with Eli’s family to provide updates,” police said in the statement.
“When it is appropriate and responsible to do so, additional details and updates will be released publicly.”
Wood’s family also shared a statement that was sent by police Thursday morning.
“Eli’s disappearance has been overwhelming for us, but your kindness has brought us strength,” the family said in the statement.
The family said they are in “frequent contact with the police and want to express our deepest gratitude to all investigative teams who have been working tirelessly since Eli was reported missing.”
The family asked for people not to post or rely on unverified information on social media.
“Inaccurate information and speculation can cause confusion and stress for our family and can interfere with the ongoing police investigation,” the family said.
“We ask that you trust the updates provided directly through police and if you have any information to please share with investigators and not on social media.”
Mathieson says there are many reasons why Wood’s story has impacted her.
“Being the same age as Eli and growing up in Kitchener and being involved with the community, it just hits home when you hear that something like this has happened and there’s just no answers,” Mathieson said.
Wood’s mother, Cindy Wood Amero, has declined media interviews but has been active on Facebook, posting daily to bring attention to Wood’s disappearance.
“Imagine not knowing if your child is cold, scared, or trying to find their way back home. That is the reality Eli’s family is facing right now,” Wood Amero wrote on Nov. 29.
“A kid with dreams, a future, and a family who refuses to give up on him. Someone out there may have seen Eli. Someone may know something. Even the smallest detail could be the one that brings geeky back,” she added, using a nickname for Wood in the post.
The community ground search is happening on Sunday from 11:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. People are asked to meet at the parking lot of 326 Riverbend Dr. in Kitchener.
Organizers are reminding participants to be dressed for the weather. They also recommend people bring a walking safety stick, a safety vest and warm clothing.
The search team going out on Sunday is made up of a variety of people who bring different skills to the table.
Diana Storey and her husband Trevor have medevac and medical standby experience and they say they can provide immediate first aid and medical care if Wood is found during the search.
They’re hoping to bring search and rescue dogs with them for some of the future ground searches. The trained dogs have a specialty in finding missing persons. The Storeys have also been training their family dog, a Belgian Malinois called Ulf, to search rubble piles in disasters.
Storey says it’s never too late to start a search.
“If you look at a lot of missing person cases, a lot of the time the person that’s gone missing isn’t found by the police. They’re found by hunters or people walking their dogs or by search parties,” she said.
“If we can find anything that would even be a good lead to hand over to the police, we’d be happy to do that. From my perspective, it’s never too late. There is always hope, and you don’t know what you’re going to find unless you look.”
