In 1973, She Went On A Routine Evening Walk And Vanished Just A Few Weeks After Her High School Graduation
Rita Lorraine Jolly was born in December 1955 and grew up in West Linn, Oregon, alongside her sister, Jill Elaine, and her two brothers.
During her childhood, she was extremely creative and loved spending her free time creating art, writing poetry, and reading books after school.
“She had a real talent. I have folders filled with her writing,” Rita’s sister, Jill, said.
“I am ashamed to admit that it’s very difficult for me to go through these writings. They are such intimate windows into her life, and often the anguish in them bleeds through.”
A part of Rita’s pull toward writing might have stemmed from her parents, Donald and Mary Elizabeth Jolly. They survived both the Great Depression and World War II and met at the University of Minnesota Law School.
Later, Donald and Mary launched a law office together– with Donald working as an attorney and Mary acting as his legal secretary.
The pair highly valued critical thinking skills and education overall. So, upon having children, they made sure to foster an open learning environment.
In addition to her love of the humanities, Rita also became very interested in animals and nature. That’s why, around the age of 13, she was gifted Sugar– a gelding quarter horse– by her parents.
From then on, Rita and Sugar were best friends– traversing the countryside and exploring together.
finwal89 – stock.adobe.com – illustrative purposes only, not the actual person
As a child, however, Rita did struggle with sensitivity and emotional regulation, which pushed Donald and Mary to consult a child psychologist. Today, her sister Jill believes that Rita may have had Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD).
Rita’s differences also made her a target of bullying in high school. And by her junior year, she eventually wrote a derogatory statement on one of the school’s walls and received a reprimand.
Donald and Mary defended their daughter, however, and urged school officials to work on improving its social culture.
Then, while Rita was a senior, she attended Clackamas Community College, where she took classes full-time via a special program for advanced high school seniors.
There, Rita reportedly thrived and particularly excelled in the art and creative writing classes. And in June 1973, she finally graduated from high school.
Clackamas County Sheriff’s Office – pictured above is Rita
Just a few weeks after attending her graduation ceremony, though, Rita strangely disappeared after going for a routine walk.
It all began on June 29, 1973, when Rita decided to take a stroll at about 7:15 p.m. This was not abnormal for her, either, so she left home with no clothes, money, or other personal items. While Rita left with a smile on her face, however, she never returned home.
She was spotted in the Robinwood area on Sunset Avenue sometime between 8:30 p.m. and 9:00 p.m. Later, at 9:30 p.m., she was last seen near the Oregon City Arch bridge.
The next evening, on June 30, two young men did contact the police and detailed how they attempted to pick up a teen who looked like Rita. However, the men claimed that the young woman was not Rita. They also did not leave behind any contact information, meaning authorities were unable to follow up with the tipsters.
So, the following years were extremely taxing on the Jolly family– who continued searching for answers. And unfortunately, Jill revealed that they still have no clue as to what really happened.
“We all have our theories,” Jill said. “Our dad thought she [Rita] had called several times, mostly just silence on the phone. But once, he said that he heard her voice [saying], ‘Mom? Mom?’ then ‘Dad?’ then a click on the phone hanging up.”
Since so much time has passed since Rita’s disappearance, Jill has also been feeling conflicted about whether or not the case will ever be solved. But, with the advancement of forensic technologies, she has held onto hope.
“After 50 years, I don’t think it’s likely that we will have answers before all of us who knew her are gone from this earth,” Jill explained.
“The advent of DNA gave us so much hope, but the number of unidentified bodies and the expense and difficulty of the tests has been discouraging. It’s not a quick fix. Nonetheless, perhaps someday she will be one of the humans who are ‘given their name back.'”
Authorities do suspect that foul play was involved in Rita’s disappearance. Five possible suspects have also been identified.
At the time she vanished, Rita was five foot five, weighed 130 pounds, and had brown hair. June 29, 2023, marks 50 years since Rita went missing, and she would have been 67 years old today.
If you have any information regarding Rita Jolly’s disappearance, you are urged to contact Detective James White from the Clackamas County Sheriff’s Office at (503) 785-5000.
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