Katharina Buczek
But, no one had spotted a missing woman fitting Sharon’s description, so the police were left without any firm leads.
It also puzzled investigators how her credit card, bank accounts, and social security number showed no activity on or since that day.
“The no leads– that is just killing us. If a credit card had been used or something… nothing. It’s so hard because we’re just basically doing what we can to get the word out there. We have no direction on where to go,” said Louise Baxter, Sharon’s friend of thirty years, in a 2000 interview with HeraldNet.
Despite having no answers, Louise and countless other community members continued to contribute to the search effort.
They would gather at 9:00 a.m. each day and comb through woods, swamps, and bushes surrounding the mall and along route I-95 until the evening.
The search groups– which ranged from ten to nearly eighty people– would also walk down road routes, knock on home doors, and follow up with local businesses in hopes someone had spotted Sharon.
“We have just been blessed by a lot of people coming out and helping us put up flyers. We’re trying to hold it together as best we can and keep a positive attitude that we are going to find her and bring her home,” Louise added.
At the time, Sergeant Boyd Bryant with the Everett Police Department commended the searchers for their “phenomenal job” in raising awareness about the case. The great word of mouth ultimately provided the police with an influx of tips– as much as over fifty in just one day.
Tragically, though, none of the tips have resulted in a solid lead that might help find Sharon.
Her loved ones set up an account known as the Shari Anderson Fund at a local Washington Mutual Bank so people in the community could donate to the search efforts.
And even though Sharon’s disappearance was considered suspicious, investigators simply had no evidence that foul play was involved.
