JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – On Feb. 23, 2001, John Rowan never showed up to work. His mother says 21 years later, she still doesn’t know what happened to him.
“He left behind a wife and young children,” explained his mother, Peg.
Rowan’s mother says police have told her that her son was abducted outside of his Jacksonville home early in the morning. His SUV was found a month later in Orlando.
On Friday, families and friends of missing relatives and loved ones came to pray at a special memorial outside the Basilica of Immaculate Conception. Rowan’s mother purchased the memorial for the city to honor those who haven’t come home.
The group prayed that everyone will one day find answers.
“People in Jacksonville have to know a lot more about where my son is and they’re not coming forward,” Peg Rowan said.
“When you lose someone and they go missing, it’s heartbreaking. It’s a pain that never goes away,” she added.
Peg Rowan says she’s not going to stop sharing her son’s story and saying his name until he’s found.
“Even though it’s been 21 years, even if it’s been 100 years, we still want to find him and put him to rest,” she said.
Rowan says she usually goes to Jacksonville City Hall to honor Missing Persons Day, but she says that’s been cancelled due to the pandemic.