Regina Treaty/Status Indian Services (RT/SIS) held an event aimed at raising awareness about the disappearance of Tamra Keepess, nearly two decades ago.
On July 5th, 2004. Tamra disappeared from her family home in Regina, 16 years later, she still hasn’t been found.
Regina Police Chief Evan Bray, says the investigation into Tamra’s disappearance remains as important now, as it was 16 years ago.
“We’ve got a daughter in our city, a little girl, who’s missing, and we’ve not yet been able to determine where Tamra is,” said Bray. “I think it stands to reason that this is an important investigation. There’s been, literally, hundreds of thousands of hours put into this investigation, and it will remain open until we can answer the question about what happened to Tamra.”
RT/SIS usually hosts a barbecue on the anniversary of Tamra’s disappearance, but due to COVID-19, they had to come up with another plan.
Bray says it’s important to keep having the conversation about the incident because it results in a spike in the amount of tips police receive about the case.
“I appreciate the fact that we’re able to have this conversation here today, this sparks the conversation again in our community, at the supper table, at workstations at work,” said Bray. “People are talking about it, and we still hope that there is someone out there who has a piece of information that can ultimately lead us towards finding out what happened to Tamra.”
Bray adds that he hopes the barbecues and awareness events continue because it allows the community and the family to honour Tamra.
“I can’t imagine the grief that a family goes through knowing a loved one is not with them, but there are no answers as to where they are,” said Bray. “When it’s a five-year-old, I think it even takes on a whole feeling. Our hearts break for the family, and I think the ability for us to honour Tamra while continuing to search for answers, makes this event extremely important.”
To this day, there is a $50,000 reward for information that will help locate Tamra Keepness.
