Last month, I wrote an article for my company's newsletter to share my experience with all our customers here at Trakware. This may seem like an odd thing to share with a customer but I feel there are many lessons to be learned from our experience with the search for Austin and how it affected our view of the world.

Many people have a negative view of the world and I wanted to let people know that has not, in any way, been our experience.

Here's my article:

Austin Hudson-Lapore, 1992-2013On the evening of June 13th, my wife and I got the call that every parent dreads. “Your son left the apartment yesterday evening and we can’t find him. We've called all his friends and no one has seen him since yesterday!” My son Austin was a rising senior studying Biochemistry at the University of Chicago. The day before, he had completed his last final in the early afternoon and then returned to his apartment. It was forecast to be a stormy evening in Chicago as a rare kind of thunderstorm, a “derecho”, was passing over the city. At 8:34pm, with the rain tapering off, he logged off his computer, left his apartment and disappeared. It was obvious to everyone who knew Austin that he’d gone towards the lake front, half a mile away, to watch the lightning as the thunderstorms pass over the city. He loved exploring the lake front parks and had been an avid weather buff since childhood. Thus ensued a frantic search for the next six days in the area between his apartment in Hyde Park and the lake shore. With the media closely following the story, friends, family, volunteers, police, marine units and divers searched for him. Finally, on the 7th day, a fisherman saw a shape in the water in the dawn light and the search was over. This story is not so much about how my son lived or died but rather about what we learned in our search for him. We learned that the world can be incredibly kind - With our faces splashed across newspapers and television, many knew us by sight. People called from passing cars their prayers and best wishes. We were stopped on the street to be hugged and prayed over. The people at FedEx Office and Staples printed all our missing posters at cost or for free. Businesses with private security cameras poured over grainy images looking for our son passing. Taxis stopped and offered us free rides. Volunteers papered the area with Austin’s image. I even had two kids dressed like gang-bangers walk up to me to shake my hand and to tell me their hommies were scouring their territories for him and for me to be strong. We learned you have to take matters in to your own hands – Although the police put a lot of resources into the search, they also have limited time and manpower. We worked from morning to night coordinating help, getting security camera footage, posting missing flyers, updating websites and Facebook, working leads and talking to the media. The images of us driving the search brought in many more prayers and offers of support. We learned to ask for and accept help – We used the media to appeal for help in our search. That resulted in community organizers offering their help with flyering and a search dog (over the objections of the police). With churches forming prayer circles for his safe return. With boaters offering to help us with a water search. And with volunteer searchers who scoured the alleyways and wooded areas for Austin. We learned to reach out using social media – With the help of my very internet savvy sister, niece and her best guy, their website and social media campaigns raised awareness of our search with the media and among younger people who don’t follow traditional media. It also made our search national and international news with the story appearing in the press from London to Taiwan. And finally, we relearned the power of family – My family is a very strong one. Even though this was a terrible time, we all supported and loved each other 100%. That love and support came through in all the media we did and we think it’s one of the reasons people were so supportive of us. It maintained our spirits then and it will help us to heal now. Because in the end all that’s really important in life is family. Give your kids and grandkids a hug for us.

I am Isaac Larkin's aunt. First I need to tell you how deeply I feel your loss. That Austin was taken from you, and his dear friends, is beyond my ability to comprehend.
That being said, your letter moved me. Your strength in your ability to express these thoughts is astounding. Stay strong.

Reply

Gregg LaPore

8/15/2013 05:11:52 am

Nancy -
Thank you very much. I just wish I didn't have the occasion to need to write such a thing. But given that what happened did happen, I try to find the good parts of it. And those things were really good. I barely even touched on all the love and support that we got. A touching one was a gal at an apartment building near the park that had security cameras. After telling her our story, she called down to the building engineer to ask for his help. When he came up, she excused herself and went upstairs. 15 minutes later, she reappeared with teary eyes and went back to work. Later on, someone told us that she had gone to the top of the building so that "she could be a little closer to God" to pray for Austin's safe return. We have pages of stories like that and someday we hope to share them all. All the best, Gregg

Please forgive me for not writing earlier but I had no idea until I saw this. You guys are truly an inspiration in being able to write and share about this and encourage others. You may not know this but just over 10 years ago my wife Debbie and I went through this ordeal when our precious daughter Summer passed away at the age of 11. We don't use the word lost anymore after a friend shared with us that Summer was not lost, we know exactly where she is.
We will pray for your and your family for the peace and comfort that only God can give. Your friends, Ron and Debbie Smith

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Collecting stories so that everyone can see who Austin Hudson-Lapore was to each of us.