Gah, I have been neglecting my weekly features as of late and haven’t done a FF case since March. This one is Joyce Creola Brewer, a fifteen-year-old girl who disappeared from Grand Prairie, Texas on September 6, 1970.
The circumstances of Joyce’s disappearance — last seen stomping out of the house after a fight with her parents — might indicate she ran away. If so she’s been gone for a VERY long time, obviously — 46 years, almost 47 — but it’s by no means impossible that she’s still alive.
If she is not, or for that matter if she is, a good way to identify her would be the extensive burn scars on her torso and left arm.
If she’s still alive, Joyce would be 62 today, and maybe a grandmother or something.
The Charley Project Blog 
Maybe, or maybe not. She could have ended up a Jane Doe like that poor gal they just identified in CA from a hit a run 26 years ago. More and more of those cases are being solved. I have to wonder how many of the old cold cases, especially runaways, ended well. There’s always one or two that pops up every now and then that were able to disappear, but it seems like a lot more are just being identified. I’ll always hope for the best, but keep one eye on the possibility of a sad ending.
I always hate these cases with so few info available – or ones that have one photo that is poor quality. It just baffles me, because you would think these people would be getting all the info out that they could. Granted this was in a time before the internet etc, but I am still baffled and saddened by it.
I was just doing a Google Search on her – and came across this link – https://www.newspapers.com/newspage/15207313/
I don’t have a membership to Newspapers.com – but it gives an outline of the article from GRAND PRAIRIE DAILY NEW AUgust 14, 1973 and states she was 17 at the time of disappearance. Not sure if they have it wrong or what, but figured I would share.
And oddly enough…. there was a Joyce Brewer that passed away at 64 on March 15, 2017 in Carlisle, PA. And there is NO information on her obituary other than that. Not even a photo.
Odds are its not her, but the age would be right if she was actually 17 at the time she went missing.
Hmmmmm….
Unfortunately, sometimes people do just walk away from their lives. I suspect that this was the case with Dixie Lee Arensen. I did a search on her and, if she’s the same person, got divorced in 1970 (Two years after her disappearance). She got married a few times after that.
Would she have kept her maiden name this whole time though? Would have made it easy to ID her, though back in the day not so much, with no computers and cross referencing. I’m close to there, so let me see what I can find out from local papers. Also, if she was military in any way, that would make it hard to find details. Carlisle is VERY military, as are many towns around it. There are multiple bases extending from there, down to Frederick MD, Camp David, etc.
I am sure the chances that that is her are VERY Slim. Just thought it lined up strangely – and odd obituary with NO Info or picture. But I agree the chances are pretty slim I am sure. That is my brain letting itself get ahead of me! 😉
I haven’t been able to track down anything else so far, which in itself is strange with so many small time papers in that area. I’ll post back if I ever find anything. I will agree the timing is very odd, but stranger things have happened.
I just searched Joyce Creola Brewer, on Ancestry. The Texas Department of Health has her being born on January 24. 1954. So she would have been 16 when she disappeared. It would also be nice if they gave us the name of the boyfriend. Most likely is was an older male.