Hello, I'm
Cheryl Ann Kenney

Although my actual actions within the store that evening are speculated on the part of my employer, friends, family, organizations, and law enforcement, I believe they are really close. I went through my normal tasks that evening with my normal pace. The store was scheduled to close at midnight but when it was slow, our store owner would allow us to close earlier. Tonight, I was closing at 10:00 p.m.

 

I wasn't alone in the store earlier in the evening. Lowell Hulse, Jr., the gentleman who took care of light maintenance and our floors was there. As I went about my tasks, Lowell expressed to law enforcement, later when interviewed, that he did the same. He did say that there was a male customer or maybe two that came in that he did not recognize. Normally, we knew most of our customers due to their repeat visits. Lowell indicated that in general, there was no one he knew by name that night. 

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When it came close to closing, I started my routine of bringing things in from outdoors, securing the ice machine, the restrooms (which required keys since they were on the west/outside of the building), and checking gas pumps. Once I felt all was secure as needed, I went back in the store.

 

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I had parked my car on the east side of the building just in front of a storage building. My driver's car door was visible from the door of the store. At 10:17 p.m., I set the store alarm. Normally, I would get my favorite fountain drink to go for my trip home. I likely had my purse and my drink in my hands when I stepped out and closed east side entrance door. I locked the door to the business. 

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I turned to go to my car. We had recently purchased a white, four door, 1988 Plymouth Gran Fury. Upon reaching the car everything is speculation from here. I believe I got to the car, unlocked it (manual locks only), got my key out of the lock, and then was accosted from behind. Witnesses that were going into work at the nearby 3M Manufacturing plant (only yards away) heard my screams. That was the last time anyone would see me or hear my voice, aside from my captor(s). There was nothing left at the scene, not even disturbed ground. There was nothing dropped, no purse and no drink. I literally vanished without a trace.

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The car was new to our family although already few years old. It was the only running car we had and there was only one set of keys to it. The set in my possession that evening. 

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As time passed, my husband, Walter James Kenney, was at home with our children and grew concerned. It was not my normal habit not to be home after closing. I was always punctual at either time we closed. According to our rural standards, I didn't live too far from Nevada or the store. If I closed at 10:00 p.m., I was normally home by 10:30.

 

Walter owned a motorcycle but it didn't always run very well. He had also been struggling with a back injury and was not working at this time. When I did not return home, Walter rode the motorcycle to the convenience store. He located my car, the locked and darkened store, but no sign of me at all. Since I had a family member in town, he drove there to see if I had called there or stopped in. I had not. Walter then went to other locations trying to locate me. I had not been heard from by any friends or family. By 2:00 a.m., the fear was setting in. Walter contacted the Nevada Police Department. They arrived on scene and assessed the situation. According to the department, in those early morning hours, they located no visible signs of struggle, no physical evidence, and suggested that I had possibly left on my own accord. A formal search would not be conducted until daylight hours.

 

There was a mobile home park behind the convenience store and a neighboring motel.  There were no reports of anything out of the ordinary. It was not until a few days later that two witnesses, going in to work at the nearby 3M Manufacturing plant that night came forward after reading my story in the paper. They stated that they did hear my screams but thought it was likely just a domestic dispute from a tavern/bar across the street. Once they read the information, they realized what had occurred and contacted the police department.

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That is it. That's my story of the evening of my disappearance. I could speculate that there was a vehicle parked behind the store awaiting my exit. Someone was watching me that evening and I think they got extremely lucky. Remember, we didn't normally close until midnight, but on this night, I closed early. How could I have known I was about to disappear?

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