Today, in honor of the National Day of Awareness for Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls (MMIWG), I am highlighting four cases of missing and murdered young female Menominee Tribal Members.
The day, and its call to wear red, offers us all a chance to pay attention both to specific unsolved cases, and to some heart-breaking statistics. According to a report by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 84% of Indigenous women have experienced violence in their lifetime, and more than half experienced sexual violence. Homicide remains the leading cause of death among Indigenous women under the age of 44.
In 2020, the Wisconsin Department of Justice established the Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women Task Force to help fight the abduction, homicide, violence, and trafficking of Indigenous women and girls in Wisconsin.
Despite their best efforts, the following cases and others in Wisconsin remain unsolved:
Rys Pocan, a Menominee Tribe member and mother of four, was last seen by a woman named Shirley at the American Council on Alcoholism in Milwaukee at 11:30 p.m. on August 10, 1989. Prior to that, a bartender at the Golden Spike Tavern said he saw her leave with an older man sometime between 10-11 p.m. Her brother reported her missing on August 13. Hunters found her remains near Nichols Creek in Sheboygan County on Sept. 2, 1989.
Rae Elaine Tourtillott, an enrolled member of the Menominee Indian Tribe, went to a birthday party on the Menominee Indian Reservation on Oct. 15, 1986. The 19-year old Menomonee Princess and gifted tribal dancer, left the party and got into a vehicle with two other individuals. Tourtillott was reportedly last seen alive after she exited the vehicle near the Tomow Overlook off of Old South Branch RD on the Menominee Indian Reservation. The following day Tourtillott was reported missing. On April 9, 1987, Tourtillott’s body was recovered by Menominee Tribal Police and the FBI.
Lisa Lynn Ninham was just 17-years old in 1980 when she went missing near Keshena, Wisconsin. She has not been seen since.
Katelynn Kelley was last seen near Silver Canoe Road walking on County VV toward Keshena the night of June 16, 2020. Katelyn may have made it home that night. She mentioned a black SUV parked near her apartment in a Facebook post later that evening. No one saw her after that post and her family reported her missing the next day. Nearly a year later, on March 17, 2021, human remains were found on the Menominee Indian Reservation. An autopsy was conducted and authorities were able to positively identify Katelyn
Maybe, you’ve heard rumbling about one of these cases. Maybe you’ve been debating all these years whether the conversation you overheard while fishing on the Wolf River, or enjoying double bubble at a bar in Shawano County, or playing cards at the casino, or pushing a swing at a park in Gillett might be worth mentioning to the FBI hotline.
It is.
Technological advancements have made solving these cold cases absolutely plausible. Investigators can move forward with the slightest clue.
If you have information about any of these case, please call the Menominee Tribal Police tip line at 715-994-1307 or 715-799-3881.
Note: I heard about Rae Elaine Tourtillott’s case as it unfolded and I wondered and worried about her and her family in that distant way we news junkies do. Then, many years later, I met her cousin, Andrea, a super human dynamo advocate, and I became even more invested in this case. Andrea, a longtime Outagamie County Social Worker and current private parent coach, has been a passionate advocate for Rae and all Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Children.
“When I learned Rae was murdered, I could not understand how anyone could have killed her,” she said. “She was such an incredible person. Respectful, kind, adventurous, caring, a devoted daughter and a new mom. Her daughter was just six weeks old when she went missing. I also could not fathom how people could murder another. It got me thinking, what happens to people to lead them to those actions. I wanted to dedicate my life to helping children have the best start in life so they might never be capable of such atrocities. I was so naive and at the same time, so correct. If we help kids get a good start with love and nurturing, perhaps that kind of anger, impulsivity, and violence never grows in a person.
After her death, I switched my major from nursing to social work and dedicated my life to helping kids. I didn’t know any other way to try to right the wrongs of her death – until I started advocating for and then serving in the State Task Force for MMIWR in WI.”
Andrea is pretty amazing and, if you want to think that her career path is a blessing that grew from this tragedy, you would not be wrong. I think Andrea was always destined to help people though.
She’s a world changer and I bet her cousin would have been too.
In addition to wearing red today, and keeping your eyes and ears open for any clues to solve any of these cases, you might consider donating to the following link: https://www.wakingwomenhealingint.org/
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Wonderful post on such an important topic and wonderful post on Andrea!
You’re both gems and we miss you.
An amazing, but sad story. Thanks for bringing it to the forefront.
Māēc Wāēwāēnen (Big Thanks in Menominee)