The Hook article by Courtney Stuart

Her striking face now looks out from a billboard on High Street with the plea: “Help us solve Morgan’s murder.”

Nearly eight months after the 20-year-old Virginia Tech student disappeared after attending a Metallica show at John Paul Jones Arena and more than four months after her remains were discovered on a remote farm in southern Albemarle County, the billboard— put up June 1— is a reminder that whoever killed Morgan Harrington is still at large in a case that some are beginning to fear may never be solved, despite a still-available $150,000 reward.

“We’re all hoping for some kind of break,” said Morgan’s mother, Gil Harrington, on May 17, the seven month anniversary of Morgan’s disappearance and two weeks before the billboard was erected.

Seeking a way to elevate the visibility of the case and perhaps prompt a tip that could help bring Morgan’s killer to justice, the Harringtons contacted Lamar advertising, the company that owns the billboards— only to learn all spots were sold out.

When the Charlottesville Newsplex heard the Harringtons were seeking billboard space, “it didn’t take two seconds” to decide to donate the space normally reserved for smiling newsanchors at television stations WCAV, WVAW, WAHU, according to General Manager Brad Ramsey, who says the company pays about $1,000 per month for the prominently-placed billboard.

State Police spokesperson Corinne Geller says the lack of new information made public in the case is not necessarily bad news.

“At first we were forthcoming,” she says. “Now we have a criminal investigation, and there’s certain information we have to evaluate so we don’t jeopardize the eventual prosecution. We’re still very hopeful, and we’ve certainly not given up.”

As for the billboard, it will remain up through the end of June, says Ramsey, in hopes of sparking new information to solve the case.

“It just seemed like the right thing to do,” says Ramsey. “I don’t think there’s a single person in this community who doesn’t want to find the person responsible for Morgan’s death, other than the person who did it.”

Her striking face now looks out from a billboard on High Street with the plea: “Help us solve Morgan’s murder.”

Nearly eight months after the 20-year-old Virginia Tech student disappeared after attending a Metallica show at John Paul Jones Arena and more than four months after her remains were discovered on a remote farm in southern Albemarle County, the billboard— put up June 1— is a reminder that whoever killed Morgan Harrington is still at large in a case that some are beginning to fear may never be solved, despite a still-available $150,000 reward.

“We’re all hoping for some kind of break,” said Morgan’s mother, Gil Harrington, on May 17, the seven month anniversary of Morgan’s disappearance and two weeks before the billboard was erected.

Seeking a way to elevate the visibility of the case and perhaps prompt a tip that could help bring Morgan’s killer to justice, the Harringtons contacted Lamar advertising, the company that owns the billboards— only to learn all spots were sold out.

When the Charlottesville Newsplex heard the Harringtons were seeking billboard space, “it didn’t take two seconds” to decide to donate the space normally reserved for smiling newsanchors at television stations WCAV, WVAW, WAHU, according to General Manager Brad Ramsey, who says the company pays about $1,000 per month for the prominently-placed billboard.

State Police spokesperson Corinne Geller says the lack of new information made public in the case is not necessarily bad news.

“At first we were forthcoming,” she says. “Now we have a criminal investigation, and there’s certain information we have to evaluate so we don’t jeopardize the eventual prosecution. We’re still very hopeful, and we’ve certainly not given up.”

As for the billboard, it will remain up through the end of June, says Ramsey, in hopes of sparking new information to solve the case.

“It just seemed like the right thing to do,” says Ramsey. “I don’t think there’s a single person in this community who doesn’t want to find the person responsible for Morgan’s death, other than the person who did it.”

Her striking face now looks out from a billboard on High Street with the plea: “Help us solve Morgan’s murder.”

Nearly eight months after the 20-year-old Virginia Tech student disappeared after attending a Metallica show at John Paul Jones Arena and more than four months after her remains were discovered on a remote farm in southern Albemarle County, the billboard— put up June 1— is a reminder that whoever killed Morgan Harrington is still at large in a case that some are beginning to fear may never be solved, despite a still-available $150,000 reward.

“We’re all hoping for some kind of break,” said Morgan’s mother, Gil Harrington, on May 17, the seven month anniversary of Morgan’s disappearance and two weeks before the billboard was erected.

Seeking a way to elevate the visibility of the case and perhaps prompt a tip that could help bring Morgan’s killer to justice, the Harringtons contacted Lamar advertising, the company that owns the billboards— only to learn all spots were sold out.

When the Charlottesville Newsplex heard the Harringtons were seeking billboard space, “it didn’t take two seconds” to decide to donate the space normally reserved for smiling newsanchors at television stations WCAV, WVAW, WAHU, according to General Manager Brad Ramsey, who says the company pays about $1,000 per month for the prominently-placed billboard.

State Police spokesperson Corinne Geller says the lack of new information made public in the case is not necessarily bad news.

“At first we were forthcoming,” she says. “Now we have a criminal investigation, and there’s certain information we have to evaluate so we don’t jeopardize the eventual prosecution. We’re still very hopeful, and we’ve certainly not given up.”

As for the billboard, it will remain up through the end of June, says Ramsey, in hopes of sparking new information to solve the case.

“It just seemed like the right thing to do,” says Ramsey. “I don’t think there’s a single person in this community who doesn’t want to find the person responsible for Morgan’s death, other than the person who did it.”

We feel a great responsibility to protect other young lives by focusing on campus safety and trying to save parents the anguish we have experienced because of Morgan’s murder.

Six months into the Morgan Harrington murder case, police have dropped a bombshell: Forensic testing has concluded that the black Pantera t-shirt found on a bush outside an apartment building at the corner of 15th Street and Grady Avenue belonged to Harrington and is the one she was reportedly wearing when she disappeared after attending an October 17 Metallica concert at John Paul Jones Arena.

The news is the first major development in the case to be made public since the discovery of Harrington’s body on January 26 on a 740-acre farm in southern Albemarle County, and it comes as a shock to those who live in the 21-unit building where the shirt was found.

“Good God!” exclaimed Blaine Eichner, the UVA student who discovered the shirt back in mid-November as he was returning home from class.

When he was first interviewed by the Hook in late January, Eichner expressed doubt that the shirt— which he said appeared to have faces of the Pantera band members along with beige letters— could have belonged to Harrington.

“I feel like, if it really had something to do with the case, it wouldn’t have been thrown on a bush,” he said at the time, suggesting it could also be a “crazy person who just wants attention.”

Learning that it is, in fact, Harrington’s shirt— which he discovered on November 11, a full three weeks after her disappearance— is “scary,” he says, “the closeness of it.”

Another person surprised by the revelation is Norma Parson, a newspaper deliverywoman who has long claimed that she saw Harrington— or an amazing lookalike— leaving a room on the West Lawn sometime around 3am on the night of the Metallica show. Parson says she still stands by her story, and hopes that the discovery of the shirt will help solve the case for the family’s sake.

“I’ve been hoping and praying for the Harringtons,” says Parson.

The presence of Harrington’s shirt a mile and a half from the last place she was seen alive and 10 miles from where her body was discovered seems to pose more questions than it answers. According to the police press release, investigators have followed up on 1,000 tips, conducted more than 100 interviews, and have made “substantial progress in evaluating countless possibilities and scenarios” relating to Harrington’s disappearance and death.

In spite of that progress, investigators continue to urge the public to come forward with “factual details” rather than “theoretical abstracts.”

“It’s going to take that one courageous phone call to Crime Stoppers from someone who knows something firsthand about this case,” says Lt. Joe Rader in the release.

Tips can be called in the Jefferson Area Crimestoppers at 434-977-4000, to the Virginia State Police Tip Line at 434-352-3467, or emailed to State Police at bci-appomattox@vsp.virginia.gov. The $150,000 reward is still availabl

APPOMATTOX – In the six months since the disappearance and death of Morgan D. Harrington, Virginia State Police with the assistance of local investigators have pursued close to a thousand leads and interviewed more than 100 individuals as part of the on-going investigation. In addition, forensic testing has recently confirmed an article of clothing as belonging to the 20-year-old Roanoke woman.

Harrington disappeared the night of Oct. 17, 2009, during a Metallica concert at the John Paul Jones Arena on the University of Virginia (UVA) grounds in Charlottesville, Va. During the course of the investigation, police have been able to establish a timeline of Miss Harrington’s movements once she ended up outside of the arena at approximately 8:30 p.m. After talking to her friends on her cell phone, she then walked through the parking lot of University Hall and was also seen in the Lannigan Athletic Field parking lot, which is also used for RV parking. At around 9:30 p.m., she was last seen walking on the Copeley Road bridge near Ivy Road, hitchhiking for a ride.

An Albemarle County landowner discovered Harrington’s body in a field on his 700-acre farm on the morning of Jan. 26, 2010. The Office of the Chief Medical Examiner ruled the manner of death as a homicide. The cause and time of death remain under investigation.

Recently completed testing by the Virginia Department of Forensic Science confirmed that a black T-shirt discovered Nov. 11, 2009, in the city of Charlottesville is the one Harrington was last seen wearing the night of the concert. The T-shirt, with the word “Pantera” spelled out in tan letters across the front, was discovered by a Charlottesville resident on Nov. 11, 2009, and turned over to investigators. The T-shirt was found on 15^th Street near the intersection of Grady Avenue.

In addition, the team of investigators from the University of Virginia Police, Albemarle County Police, Charlottesville Police, Virginia State Police and the FBI assigned to the case has made substantial progress in evaluating countless possibilities and scenarios related to the circumstances surrounding Harrington’s disappearance and death.

“We are still encouraging the public to come forward with relevant information concerning Morgan Harrington,” said Lt. Joe Rader, Virginia State Police Bureau of Criminal Investigation Appomattox Field Office. “As this investigation continues to progress, factual details are more helpful and important to investigators than theoretical abstracts. It’s going to take that one courageous phone call to Crime Stoppers from someone who knows something firsthand about this case that will be the key to linking together the evidence and data collected to date.”

Anyone with information is asked to call the Jefferson Area Crime Stoppers at (434) 977-4000. A reward of $150,041 is still available for anyone with information that leads to a resolution of this crime. Calls can also be made to local police or the Virginia State Police Tip Line at (434) 352-3467 or emailed to the State Police at bci-appomattox@vsp.virginia.gov. Anonymous tips are welcome.

April 8, 2010

Rainy skies were not enough to dampen the spirits of a local group determine to “rid the night” of violence and sexual predators.

“Taking Back the Night” is a rally, march and vigil aimed at inciting action.
The nationwide even encourages silent victims to come forward.

There were 21 reported rapes in 2009 according to Albemarle County Police. So far this year, only one rape has been reported. Speaker and rape victim Liz Seccuro says, there many more sex crimes that go un-reported.

Seccuro knows what it’s like to be silenced as a victim of a sex crime. She was silent for 20 years before her rapist came forward and confessed.

Seccuro says, Morgan Harrington’s killer will eventually come forward, like her attacker did. “Those people who have information and are hiding it from law enforcement, we will find you. One day it will become too much to bear for them.”

Dan Harrington is connected to these victims. He is a victim himself, often defending his dead daughter. People have accused Morgan on blogs and internet sites of dressing provocatively and drinking, implying she was “asking” for crime to happen.

“She had a T-shirt that covered her, she had a mini-skirt, she had leggings and black boots. The only skin showing was her hands and face,” Harrington says.

But the accusations go beyond the web. Harrington tells CBS19 that certain law enforcement officials have suggested that Morgan was dressed provocatively, which is why she was abducted and killed.

Harrington says, his daughter is blamed, much like other victims of sexual violence are blamed for the crimes committed against them.

Charlottesville\'s Take Back the Night

A controversial group is picketing Virginia Tech two weeks before the three-year anniversary of the shooting massacre. The Westboro Baptist Church says God sent the killer. They will also speak out about Morgan Harrington.

Carlos Vergara spoke to Shirley Phelps-Roper, the daughter of Fred Phelps, the leader of the Westboro Baptist Church. The Church is a known hate group that usually targets gays. Now, somehow, they are finding a way to blame the 32 victims of the Virginia Tech massacre for their own deaths.

But the group doesn’t stop there. On Friday, they’ll try to claim that Morgan Harrington was somehow responsible for her own death as well. The 20-year-old’s remains were found on an Albemarle County farm in January. She had been missing months earlier after attending a concert at the John Paul Jones Arena.

Harrington’s mother, Gil Harrington, says she refused to call the group a church. She says they are terrorists and zealots. Harrington says she won’t be at Virginia Tech on Friday. She’ll be attending a ground-breaking ceremony for the dedication of a school medical wing named after Morgan Harrington’s volunteerism to education.

Full Story at: http://www.newsplex.com/home/headlines/89945127.html

A group calling themselves ‘Morgan’s Warriors’ are keeping alive the memory of murdered 20-year-old Virginia Tech student Morgan Harrington.

About 20 members added painted rocks to the memorial at the Copeley Road Bridge in Charlottesville Saturday afternoon. Harrington disappeared in October following the Metallica concert nearby at the John Paul Jones Arena. Her body was found on an Albemarle County farm in January. 

Full Story at:http://www.nbc29.com/Global/story.asp?S=12252255

Hidden by tall grass in a lonely field, afflicted by animals and insects, through rain and sleet and beneath 2 feet of snow, Morgan Harrington lay for as long as three months.
It’s a kick to the gut to think that she wound up dead and dumped in the woods. It’s frightening and angering to believe that someone from this community — and it most likely is someone from this community considering the remote nature of where Ms. Harrington’s body was found — would kill her.

But the hardest thought, and the one we avoid discussing, is that it didn’t have to happen.

Full article at: http://www2.dailyprogress.com/cdp/news/opinion/columnists_bryan_mckenzie/article/why_harrington_didnt_have_to_die/52260/

State police say they are “fairly confident” skeletal remains found this morning are 20-year old Morgan Harrington. In a news conference late Tuesday afternoon, State Police Superintendent Steven Flaherty delivered the news with what he described as “a heavy heart.”

The skeletal remains were found in a hayfield on the Anchorage Farm in Albemarle County this morning. State police say they are “confident” the remains are hers, but have sent the body to the medical examiner in Richmond for further tests and autopsy. A farmer found the body Tuesday morning while he was driving a tractor in his field.

While State Police did not name the landowner, News7 has confirmed that the farmer, Dave Bass, found her body along a fence line. Bass said the body was very badly decomposed. Bass said he first thought it was a deer, until he got closer and realized they were human remains.

The body was sent to the medical examiner for further testing, but investigators say significant items found at the scene lead them to be fairly certain the body is the 20-year-old Virginia Tech student who went missing during a Metallica concert last October in Charlottesville. Investigators say they can’t release details about the items found, but believe the scientific evidence will confirm with certainty that the body is Harrington’s.

State police said the body was found in a very remote area of the farm without easy access to the location. They say the area can only be reached by tractor or 4-wheel drive vehicle and there is no public access to the field. Reporters were not permitted to visit the crime scene.
State police are treating Harrington’s disappearance as a homicide. Lt. Joe Rader says the case now moved to a new level. Rader says he doesn’t see this event as a warning to residents of Charlotteville or for students at the University of Virginia.

Rader says Harrington’s parents, Dan and Gil Harrington, are in Charlottesville and were briefed by state police.

Harrington was an education major at Virginia Tech. As the news conference was underway, Virginia Tech president Charles Steger issued a letter to the Virginia Tech community saying that “we find our strength and resilience tested in the face of profound grief and loss.” He urged students and faculty to take advantage of campus counseling services as needed.

– Video: http://www.wdbj7.com/global/Category…&partnerclipid=

Three months and three days.

That’s how long it has been since Gil and Dan Harrington’s life changed. On Oct. 17, their daughter Morgan, 20, went missing outside a Metallica Concert in Charlottesville.

My colleague Anna Uhls and I spoke with the Roanoke couple today when they visited The Post as part of a two-day trip to the District. They had meetings lined up on Capitol Hill with Virginia Sen. Mark Warner and Rep. Tom Perriello; they had already seen Sen. Jim Webb.

It was all part of their campaign to keep the search for Morgan going. “It is a hellish path to be on,” Dan Harrington said.

Morgan, a Virginia Tech junior, was excited the afternoon she headed to the University of Virginia’s John Paul Jones Arena with friends. At one point, however, the willowy blonde ended up outside the arena and couldn’t get back in. She talked to a friend by cellphone, saying she’d get home on her own.

She never returned.

Gil and Dan and their son, Alex, have been looking and praying ever since. The couple held hands nearly the whole time we talked, comforting each other. Gil explained that each day they face each other and wonder what more they can do to bring Morgan home.

“This has been our life,” she said. “We don’t want to take time to have fun. Time before Morgan was taken and time after is profoundly different.”

Dan, an associate dean at the Virginia Tech Carilion School of Medicine, has gone back to work. But he said he is often overwhelmed with thoughts of his daughter.

The couple said they are urging lawmakers to make sure the Virginia State Police have the resources they need to keep the investigation alive. But they are also in town to advocate for other families with missing loved ones: The Harringtons are asking lawmakers to reauthorize Kristen’s Act, which creates a national database to search for missing adults.

The 2002 law was named for Kristen Modafferi, an 18-year-old Charlotte, N.C., woman who vanished in June 1997. U.S. Rep. Sue Myrick (N.C.) explained in a press release that the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children couldn’t help the search because Modafferi was an adult.

The House voted to reauthorize the law in February, and it’s pending before the Senate.

For the Harringtons, the search for Morgan continues. They’ve set up a web page to update their progress. A group of women who call themselves Morgan’s Warriors check out possible sightings. The non-profit CUE Center for Missing Persons in Wilmington, N.C., is planning to re-scour the area where Morgan was last spotted.

There is a $150,000 reward for her safe return or information that leads to those responsible. Dan and Gil are convinced someone has information that can help the police.

“This is a very big secret to keep for this long,” Gil said. “People have girlfriends, people have work associates. People talk.”

“If you know someone who has had a behavior change in the past three months, call the tip line,” Dan urged. It may not mean that person did anything wrong, but police can check it out, he said.

Family images of Morgan Harrington. (Anna Uhls/Post)

Morgan, an education major who said she wanted to be a teacher, was last seen on Copley Bridge near the arena. The Harringtons go there often to visit a shrine to their daughter. People leave cards and messages for Morgan. The Harringtons visited around Christmas, leaving a wreath atop a snow bank.

“Every day we look at each other and say ‘Can we do this anymore?’” Gil said. “We say we can’t quit on Morgan.’”

Virginia State Police ask that anyone with information about Morgan Harrington call the tip line at 434-352-3467 or e-mail them.

– Maria Glod

January 14, 2010

Are we not sophisticated enough as a society that women do not need to walk the streets and be regarded as, treated as, prey?  How is this tolerated as the price of being female in America?  This phenomenon of snatching people is not as common in other civilized countries.  Why here?  Perhaps because we prize the rights of individuals so much, that the collective allegiance that is fundamental to a group, respect and reciprocity are missing here.  So it is each man for himself, do what you want, take what you want – including women and children. They are only stuff after all.  This attitude must change.  It changes only through cultivating connections and relationships and creating community with expectations of integrity.

We are all learning and attempting to do this even in the face of the crime against Morgan.  This is a watershed event for our family.  Everything that has and will happen to us will be placed in time before or after Morgan was stolen.  We will be defined by it – BUT not by the loss and the pain, but by the love we received and gave and the strength we found to continue unceasingly, relentlessly searching for Morgan.  2 4 1

Members of the Roanoke community and employees of the Carilion Clinic have organized a benefit basketball game and event, “Docs for Morgan to be held at Northside High School at 7:00 p.m. on February 1st. This event aims to increase awareness of Morgan’s disappearance, raise donations for the Find Morgan Fund, and offer support to the Harrington family. The Harrington family extends their appreciation to those who have generously come together to organize and participate in this event.

CHARLOTTESVILLE — A North Carolina-based group is joining the search for a Virginia Tech student who vanished after attending a Metallica concert in Charlottesville.

Morgan Harrington’s parents announced the participation of Community United Effort – Center for Missing Persons at a news conference Tuesday.

Founder Monica Caison says the organization relies on professional search and rescue teams that volunteer to look for missing persons and works closely with police and community search teams.

Harrington disappeared on Oct. 17. Police say the 20-year-old Roanoke woman became separated from friends after she left the concert arena and was denied re-entry.

The parents of missing Virginia Tech student Morgan Harrington have invited a North Carolina-based search organization to help locate their daughter and warned Tuesday that the 20-year-old’s Oct. 17 disappearance means the Charlottesville area is not as safe as residents may believe.

Dan Harrington, Morgan Harrington’s father, gave the warning during a news conference to announce that the CUE Center for Missing Persons has agreed to help in the search for his daughter.

The nonprofit center will review previous police and community searches to determine target areas for future efforts.

“People don’t just vanish,” Harrington said. “We believe someone saw Morgan. We believe someone took our daughter. Someone in this community was directly involved in her disappearance. It’s important to realize that whoever took Morgan is still in this community and, because of that, Charlottesville and Albemarle County are not as safe as they were before Oct. 17.”

http://www2.wsls.com/sls/news/local/article/nc_group_joins_search_for_morgan_harrington/74316/

January 1, 2010

A new year – a new beginning, I try to reevaluate our quest for finding Morgan.  Are we doing enough or are we doing the right things to find Morgan?  It is hard to know because we are so enmeshed in the process and so determined and desperate to find Morgan that objectivity is long gone.

Please God let this be a year full of revelations and discovery for our family.  We need Morgan back. Without her we are pretty broken.  I can see it clearly on Alex and Dan’s faces – they look caved in.  Like someone has just knocked the stuffing out of there… and I guess someone has done just that – by stealing our precious girl. 

I am not always sure we will be able to overcome this challenge.  Can we be strong enough to keep moving ahead while keeping the pain and self-pity at bay?  That really is the crux of the faith piece.  I don’t have enough strength – but if I can turn it over to a higher power it will work out.  The thing is, I thought I had already done that – already turned it over, but in our human uncertainty and doubt we keep pulling back, mistakenly thinking we can do better if we are in charge.  I have to remember to surrender over and over.  It should be so easy, clearly the control we imagine ourselves having is merely an illusion.

Morgan Harrington, a Virginia Tech junior, disappeared from a Metallica concert in Charlottesville on October 17.

Her mother, Gil, helped Morgan pick out her outfit that night. Her father, Dan, was supposed to help her with schoolwork the next day. She never came home.

Her disappearance was the top story of 2009, according to a vote taken by the News7 staff.

Harrington’s purse and cell phone were found in the parking lot of John Paul Jones Arena at the University of Virginia.

Police conducted searches, friends passed out flyers and held vigils all hoping to find some trace of Harrington.

A timeline was released and more information about where she was last seen came to light. More than two months later and police know little more than that she was last seen near the Copely road bridge near the arena.

The night of the concert she left the arena and was not allowed back inside. She told her friends by cell phone that she would find a ride home.

Her parents say they’re holding out hope.

“You feel like you’re quitting on Morgan if you start that mourning process,” Gil Harrington said.

“How do you mourn but not only hold out hope?” Dan Harrington said.

Each day the Harrington’s struggle with not knowing.

http://www.wdbj7.com/global/story.asp?s=11757635

Virginia State Police investigators have collected DNA samples from Morgan Harrington’s parents. 

The Virginia Tech student disappeared in Charlottesville 53 days ago. 

On the website dedicated to finding Morgan, Harrington’s mother Gil says that the samples were collected just after Thanksgiving.

http://www.nbc29.com/Global/story.asp?S=11652250

This is supposed to be the most wonderful time of the year, but for the family of missing Virginia Tech student Morgan Harrington it’s the most difficult.

Her friends plan to use the holidays to remind people she’s still missing.

The Holidays came alive Thursday night for the annual Christmas parade in downtown Vinton.

It’s always fun time but this year it takes on a more serious tone.

Friends of Morgan Harrington are out of in full force raising awareness, in the parade and along the parade route.

“I’m not going to stop searching until we find her,” says Morgan’s friend Maticia Ruffner.

That’s because the missing 20 year old touched many of the people you see here marching.

“Oh my gracious. That’s really hard to even quantify,” says Diane Kelly, a friend of Morgan Harrington.

Harrington volunteered with the Forgotten Victims Group which helps kids effected by domestic violence.

Those she helped are taking her disappearance really hard.

“It’s been very tough just not being able to know where she is or how to find her,” says Morgan’s friend, Adam Brown.

They hope marching in this parade will help find her.

Volunteers drove a car plastered with Morgan’s picture.

They also passed out fliers about her disappearance.

The group says it’s smart to be here because there are several thousand people in attendance and members hope to reach those who haven’t heard about Morgan Harrington and remind those who have in hopes of generating leads.

Read the complete story at: http://www.wdbj7.com/Global/story.asp?S=11616285

The parents of missing 20-year-old Virginia Tech student Morgan Harrington are hoping for a Thanksgiving miracle – finding their daughter nearly 6 weeks after her disappearance.

Dan and Gil Harrington and their son spent part of Thanksgiving morning visiting a makeshift memorial on the Copeley Road bridge near the John Paul Jones Arena.

Police say Morgan was last seen on the bridge trying to hitch a ride from the Metallica concert around 9:30 on October 17.

“There’s something of her here. There’s nothing of her in our home, and we’re trying to change that,” said Gil.

It’s hard to imagine the Harrington’s have much to be thankful for on Thanksgiving. “I am very thankful for the huge support and the outpouring of love that we have had from friends and neighbors,” Gil said.

Friends invited the couple and their son to continue a family Thanksgiving tradition in Charlottesville, but this holiday is anything but normal for the Harrington family.

Full story at: http://www.nbc29.com/Global/story.asp?S=11578308

The Harrington family hoped to have their daughter Morgan home by Thanksgiving.

Dan and Gil Harrington have not seen 20 year old Morgan Harrington now for almost six weeks since she vanished after leaving a Metallica concert in Charlottesville October 17th.

The Harrington’s son is coming to Virginia from New York City for Thanksgiving and the family will have dinner with close family friends.

A place Gil Harrington says they always spend the holiday.

“We’re always there. It’ll be strange not to have Morgan home if she doesn’t make it home by Thanksgiving, but that is really our place of celebration and marking that holiday, we’ll be there,” says Gil Harrington.

The family says they hope someone who knows something will come forward. Again, the tip line is 434 352-3467

Story at – http://www.wdbj7.com/Global/story.asp?S=11574408

While Morgan Harrington may still be missing, she has not been forgotten.

Tammy Strickler from Broadway has never met Morgan or her family, but she lit candles Saturday evening as a prayer to bring Morgan home.

“I’m lighting these candles for Morgan’s Mom and Dad, and for Morgan, just to show my support for them and to show them that we are thinking about them, and that we are praying for them,” says Strickler.

Strickler believes these small acts of hope can carry a big message.

She says, “If they can’t get out and search for her, I know that offering up prayers of support is enough for the family. You can do behind the scene things like lighting the candles, or just praying for the family.”

Romayne Broyles from Luray had been keeping a candle stored away for years and she wasn’t sure why until now.

Broyles says, “God has his own reasons for everything and it could be that God just wanted me to save this candle for Morgan and light it in her honor.”

She has felt the pain the Harrington’s are facing.

Broyles says, “I know what it is to be without a child for a period of time and then to have that child come home. And, it’s the most wonderful thing you can ever imagine.”

Full story at: http://www.whsv.com/news/headlines/70726152.html

Kenny Jarels first met the Harringtons two weeks ago in Charlottesville when he helped with the volunteer search for new leads in the disappearance of Morgan Harrington.

“During this time, I saw the anguish and the pain that Dan and Gill Harrington were going through,” said Jarels.

Jarels says as the holidays get closer, he knew it would get tougher and tougher for them, so he and another supporter organized a candlelight vigil called “Lighting the World with Candles for Morgan” Saturday night.
   
Students at Tech leave for fall break today so Jarels says there probably will be only a small group participating in the vigil, but he says there will be people lighting candles all over the world.

Read the story at: http://www2.wsls.com/sls/news/local/article/vt_staffer_plans_worldwide_vigil_for_morgan_harrington/63745/

It’s been 32 days since Morgan Harrington disappeared outside the Metallica concert at John Paul Jones Arena. Wednesday her parents were back in Charlottesville to meet with state police and to spend time at the last place she was seen.

Dan and Gil Harrington were here to take Morgan’s dental records to state police investigators. Before that meeting, they spent a few very emotional minutes at the Copeley Road Bridge where Morgan was last seen hitching a ride at 9:30 the night of October 17.

The Harrington’s brought flowers and new weather-proof signs to the memorial on the bridge. Morgan’s parents also hung Tibetan prayer flags, which Gil Harrington says Morgan hung in her apartment in bedroom. They say they just feel the need to be where she was last seen and in the community where she was abducted from.

Gil Harrington says she’s staying optimistic about finding her daughter, but it’s getting harder. “Until this point I have been saying that we’re getting ragged. But I would say as of last night, we’re kind of unraveling a bit because it has been a month and that’s a big block of time. And you know a holiday for families is right around the corner and our family is fractured. It’s difficult.”

Dan Harrington said, “After someone has done something like this, it would be very usual for them to have some strange behaviors or some odd behaviors and if someone can think back to that period of time and think of someone that maybe was acting strangely to also notify the police.”

http://www.nbc29.com/Global/story.asp?S=11531870

Charlottesville, VA – The parents of a missing Virginia Tech student say it’s getting more difficult to hold out hope their daughter is alive.

Morgan Harrington vanished more than a month ago while attending a concert at UVA.

Dan and Gil Harrington returned to Charlottesville Wednesday to drop off their daughter’s dental records to State Police. The Harringtons then put fresh flowers and a new sign on the Copeley Road Bridge, which is the last place their daughter was seen by witnesses.

http://www.wset.com/news/stories/1109/679558.html?ref=rs&cmpid=rss_news_679558

ROANOKE – One month ago Tuesday, 20-year-old Morgan Harrington disappeared outside a concert in Charlottesville. Since then her pictures and her parents have remained in the headlines.
 
In fact, on the one month mark a woman’s body was found in Roanoke, the city where Morgan Harrington lived with her parents. State Police quickly notified area media that the body was not Morgan.
 
No matter where you are in Virginia, it’s hard to get away from the search for the Virginia Tech student.
 
But with tens of thousands of people going missing every year, we wanted to know more about the girl behind the headlines.
 
CBS 6 travelled to Roanoke late last week. A parade of yellow ribbons surrounded the Harrington home and the car windows of nearby neighbors have become homegrown rolling billboards.
 
But when Dan Harrington gets home, he says his heart sinks a little. Not because of ribbons or windows inscriptions, “I see her car outside and just for a minute there’s just this thought – oh Morgan is… and then you realize that she’s not (home).”

http://www.wtvr.com/news/wtvr-morgan-harrington-story,0,1260432.story

HOKIE NATION is a film about the Virginia Tech family.  We love our sports, but being a Hokie is about more than scoring points.  It is about the community that is Virginia Tech.

We were saddened to learn that on October 17, 2009, VT student Morgan Dana Harrrington disappeared while attending a Metallica concert in Charlottesville.  Morgan is still missing and a fund has been set up to financially support efforts to find her.

http://www.hokiemovie.com/

On the one-month anniversary of her daughter’s disappearance, Morgan Harrington’s mother released a new statement about her search and state police are trying to refute rumors about a woman’s body that was found in Roanoke.

Virginia State Police say, based on a description and other evidence, the body that was found is that of another woman.

In the time since Morgan was last seen, police have gotten about 500 tips. So far, none of the tips has led to the missing 20-year-old Virginia Tech student.

Morgan disappeared after attempting to go to a Metallica concert at the John Paul Jones Arena in Charlottesville October 17.

Police say she was last seen trying to hitchhike on the Copeley Street Bridge, which is something her mother, Gil Harrington, has said Morgan would not do.

Her parents, Dan and Gil Harrington, are working hard to keep her story alive. In a blog on the Find Morgan Website, Gil added a new post.

She writes, “Acknowledging and sharing in the joys of your colleagues and friends is what makes life rich and worth living. Holding others up when tragedy hits, as we are being held. If you let the loss ruin your life you let the guys who snatched Morgan win, you let evil win. I cannot let that happen.”

View the story at: http://www.whsv.com/news/headlines/70325837.html

The search for Morgan Harrington continues Tuesday, a month after friends, family, and volunteers have dedicated time and effort to her cause.

Tuesday marks one month that Morgan Harrington disappeared from Charlottesville. Her parents, Gil and Dan Harrington say it has been tough for them, but say they have to think positively.

“We’re coming for you baby,” said Gil Harrington, as the search continues for her daughter.

On October 17, Morgan Harrington seemingly disappeared from a Metallica concert at the John Paul Jones arena in Charlottesville.

In a press conference held late last month, Virginia State Police Lt. Joe Rader said somewhere out there lies the clues to Morgan Harrington’s disappearance.

Gil and Dan Harrington have worked tirelessly to keep Morgan’s story alive. They’ve appeared on national television broadcasts, including Doctor Phil. Morgan’s picture is even on the cover of the most recent People magazine.

Valley residents will receive a picture of Morgan in their mailbox, as part of the Valpak coupon mailer.

The case of missing Virginia Tech student Morgan Harrington received a new round of national attention this week.

Harrington’s story is featured on the cover of People Magazine.  The article is titled “Vanished.“  It profiles six different missing children who have not been fund.

The section about Morgan gives information about when and where she went missing, as well as describes her parents’ search for their daughter.

Also, our NBC affiliated in Charlottesville WVIR reports Val-Pak of the Shenandoah Valley plans to place an insert about Harrington into its coupon mailings.

Story at: http://www2.wsls.com/sls/news/local/new_river_valley/article/morgan_harrington_on_people_magazine_in_val-pak_mailer/62907/

The band Metallica played another sold out show at Madison Square Garden in New York City on Sunday — for the second of a two night tear for the hard rockers.

Fans once again lined up around the block, wearing the band’s t-shirts, chanting the band’s name hoping to hear their favorite song once inside.  There was a reminder of a desperate search for one of their own.  The brother of missing Morgan Harrington held a candlelight vigil outside the arena to let others know his sister is still gone, and there is a 150-thousand dollar reward out there to help find her and bring her home.

Click to read the story – http://liveshots.blogs.foxnews.com/2009/11/16/missing-metallica-fan-search-continues/?test=latestnews

The search for missing Virginia Tech student Morgan Harrington now enters week five. Saturday morning her parents, Dan and Gil Harrington, spoke on NBC’s Today Show.

They discussed the latest clues in the case and talking directly to the person who they think has Morgan.

A direct plea came 20-year-old Morgan Harrington’s mother, Gil Harrington. She stated, “You can be remembered as a hero of a terrible situation. Things have gotten out of hand and you can be the one that is remembered as the man who saved Morgan Harrington.”

Morgan disappeared on October 17 during a Metallica concert at John Paul Jones Arena. She was last seen by eyewitnesses hitchhiking on the Copeley Road Bridge about 9:30 that night.

Gil Harrington stated, “None of this makes sense. It doesn’t make sense that our daughter is missing – snatched from her life, abducted or possibly murdered.”

Police say Morgan would have been seen wearing a necklace like the one pictured here. It is an unusual and expensive Swarovski crystal necklace made up of large chain links. It was a gift from her brother.

Click to view the story – http://www.nbc29.com/Global/story.asp?S=11506290

RICHMOND – As the search and investigative efforts continue for missing college student Morgan Harrington, state and local investigators are now able to release additional details concerning the night of her disappearance. Miss Harrington disappeared Oct. 17, 2009, during a Metallica concert at the John Paul Jones Arena on the University of Virginia (UVA) campus in Charlottesville, Va.

During the course of the investigation, police have been able to establish a timeline of Miss Harrington’s movements once she ended up outside of the arena at approximately 8:30 p.m. After talking to her friends on her cell phone, she then walked through the parking lot of University Hall and was also seen in the Lannigan Field athlete parking lot, which is also used for RV parking. At around 9:30 p.m., she was seen walking on the Copeley Road bridge near Ivy Road.

Based on independent witness accounts, investigators are confident that Miss Harrington was hitchhiking for a ride while on the Copeley Road bridge. If anyone recalls seeing a young woman hitchhiking that night on or near the Copeley Road bridge, then they are asked to please contact police by phone or email. Anyone who might remember seeing a vehicle randomly stopped in the roadway on Copeley Road bridge that night is also asked to contact investigators. Investigators are also hoping to hear from anyone who might have loaned their cell phone to a young woman fitting Miss Harrington’s description to make a call that night.

Click link to read story – http://www.wdbj7.com/Global/story.asp?S=11499793

The message from Gil Harrington, the normally soft-spoken mother of missing Virginia Tech student Morgan Harrington, was precise, prickly, even a bit menacing: “I am starting to get angry. I am slow to anger, but once it takes hold I am relentless. I will tear apart this world to find Morgan and get this guy.”

The statement, which captured the frustration Gil and Dan Harrington feel as the search for their daughter nears the end of its fourth week, did not come in the middle of a news conference or television interview: Gil Harrington posted it on her blog, the latest online tool the Roanoke County family has turned to in a cutting-edge effort to shape media coverage and assist investigators. In the process, the family is helping to rewrite the playbook for how American families respond to a child’s disappearance.

If the Harringtons are any indication, gone are the days when families of missing children hunkered down in their homes while reporters beat on their doors, police officers quietly conducted their investigations and neighbors passed around fliers. The Harringtons have used an arsenal of online social networking tools to become a go-to source of information in the search for their 20-year-old daughter, largely taking it upon themselves to feed the public’s appetite for news — any news — about Harrington. Wednesday’s blog offered readers an essay Morgan Harrington wrote on “empty nest syndrome.”

Click link to read the story – http://www.roanoke.com/news/roanoke/wb/225980

A local business owner says its time to amp up the search for Morgan Harrington.The young lady who went missing in Charlottesville nearly a month ago.

Tim Walker, owner of Shenandoah Valley’s Valpak, decided to create his own search campaign for Morgan.

Tim is putting a flyer in each of his little blue advertising envelopes that are dispersed monthly through the mail. Thus, reaching a total of 120,000 homes in Charlottesville and the Shenandoah Valley.

Click link to read the story – http://www.whsv.com/news/headlines/69717017.html

Virginia State Police say there are no new leads in the Morgan Harrington case, even after it was mentioned on “America’s Most Wanted” Saturday.

Meanwhile, more than 1,600 volunteers searched more than 2,500 acres over the weekend.

Police say, even though several items of clothing were found, none were linked back to Morgan.

Click link to read the story – http://www.whsv.com/home/headlines/69605597.html

The case of missing Virginia Tech student Morgan Harrington will soon get another round of nationwide coverage.

The Dr. Phil show was at the Harrington’s Roanoke County home Monday, taping a show scheduled to air Thursday at 4pm.

“I think it’s critical that we keep the story out there,“ Morgan’s father Dan Harrington said.

The interview will air across the country to millions of viewers.  The Harrington’s are hoping someone will hear the story and help.

“It has a large audience, and we want to make sure we get Morgan’s story out,“ Dan Harrington said.

Many of the questions Dr. Phil asks are the same questions the Harrington’s have faced day after day.  Sitting in their living room, the Harrington’s say it is day 23 of the search, and interviews like this are as tough as ever.

Click link to read the story – http://www2.wsls.com/sls/news/local/article/harringtons_scheduled_to_appear_on_dr._phil/61073/

Over the weekend, hundreds of volunteers rummaged through wooded areas, searched footpaths and scoured a square mile of area described as “challenging rural terrain” around the John Paul Jones Arena in Charlottesville, Va., searching for any trace of missing Metallica fan Morgan Harrington, who hasn’t been seen or heard from in three weeks, when she vanished from Metallica’s Oct. 17 concert. Unfortunately, their efforts turned up little in the way of actual clues or hard evidence.

Still, Harrington’s mother, Gil, found a silver lining to the negative news: Now, investigators can eliminate the search area as having been thoroughly combed. According to Bob Smither, founder of the Texas-based Laura Recovery Center, the search may not have yielded any leads, but does provide the Harringtons with hope and mitigates a pent-up desire in the community to help.

Click link to read the story – http://www.noisecreep.com/2009/11/09/search-for-missing-metallica-fan/

Nearly 1,600 people came out to search for Morgan Harrington, the missing Virginia Tech student who disappeared on Saturday, October 17 around the John Paul Jones Arena (JPJ).

Harrington’s parents announced the search in a news conference last week. For three days, volunteers scoured the area near the JPJ, University Hall and Copeley Street Bridge, where Harrington is thought to have last been seen.

Click link to read the story – http://www.c-ville.com/index.php?cat=1991704080566501&act=post&pid=12030911092779468

The latest search for 20-year-old Virginia Tech student Morgan Harrington wrapped up Sunday night after three days of intense searching. Though volunteers remain hopeful, the search has yet to turn up any new leads.

Nearly 1,600 volunteers in teams of about a dozen, combed through the area near the Copeley Street Bridge, University Hall, and the John Paul Jones Arena in Charlottesville, Virginia.

Harrington, who has been missing since October 17, disappeared after being separated from friends while attending a Metallica concert. She was last seen about 9:30 that night walking on the Copeley Street Bridge, just south of the arena.

The search comes just days after Harrington’s parents made an emotional appeal for help in the search for their daughter. Morgan’s father, Dan Harrington, has promised to not give up the search. He says, “We will stop at nothing until she is found, and we are eternally grateful for any additional support the community can offer in bringing Morgan home.”

Click link to read the story – http://www.examiner.com/x-28599-Crime–Media-Examiner~y2009m11d8-500-join-new-search-for-Morgan-Harrington

CHARLOTTESVILLE The scene was idyllic — green fields, white fences, sunshine, a breeze and such quiet that you could hear the hiss of shoes on dry grass.

A beautiful setting for what was a grim task: a search for anything to help tell the story of what happened to 20-year-old Morgan Harrington on the mid-October night the Roanoke County woman disappeared from outside a Metallica concert here.

Six women and 10 men lined up across the edge of the field Saturday and began to walk slowly and methodically, eyes down, scanning left and right and left again. There was a sense of expectation, and a little fear.

“You want to find clues, but fear finding something … how you don’t want it to turn out,” said Susan Rohm-Briggs, 40, pausing to choose her words.

Yet, in a search like this, finding nothing is one definition of success.

“We want to be able to go back and say, ‘We’ve looked there and there’s nothing there,’ ” said their volunteer leader, Carolyn Shuckerow, 26, an information technology manager for a McClean defense contractor.

Click link to read the story – http://www.roanoke.com/news/roanoke/wb/225543

Day Two of a volunteer ground search for Morgan Harrington turns up no new leads. Friends and complete strangers joined the Saturday search for the missing 20-year-old Virginia Tech student. 

More than 500 volunteers combed through wooded areas around the Copeley Street bridge, University Hall, and the John Paul Jones Arena. That’s where Harrington was last seen three weeks ago tonight outside a Metallica concert. 

Many volunteers say finding Morgan is close to their hearts.      

Parent volunteer Shelly Preddy says, “This is something so many of us can relate to.  You know there’s a lot of parents out here, that’s what I’m seeing, a lot of parents , they can only imagine what they’re going through, and then there’s a lot of people her age.” 

Click link to read the story – http://www.nbc29.com/Global/story.asp?S=11463317

CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. (AP) – More than 500 volunteers are continuing the search for a Virginia Tech student who went missing in Charlottesville last month.

Twenty-year-old Morgan Dana Harrington was last seen Oct. 17 after she became separated from her friends at a Metallica concert.

A three-day search for Harrington began Friday with about 360 volunteers, but they turned up no new leads. On Saturday, there was a 30-minute wait for volunteers to register.

Click link to read the story – http://www.wtvr.com/news/wtvr-search-continues-morgan-harrington-090711,0,5117826.story

CHARLOTTESVILLE — A three-day search effort for missing Virginia Tech student Morgan Harrington continues today.

More than 500 volunteers are teamed up today to resume the search that started yesterday.

There was a 30-minute wait for volunteers to register this morning.

The Texas-based Laura Recovery Center organized the three-day search, The center was co-founded by Bob Smither, who is in Charlottesville this weekend. The center is named in memory of Smither’s daughter, who was 12 when she was abducted and slain, hopes to have a 3-square-mile area searched by the end of the effort late Sunday.

Click here to read the story – http://www.roanoke.com/news/breaking/wb/225482

CHARLOTTESVILLE — A massive search by 360 volunteers Friday apparently turned up no new leads in the disappearance of Virginia Tech student Morgan Harrington, but organizers said they will return to the job today and Sunday.

Volunteers from across Virginia turned out to take part in the search across 2 square miles of Charlottesville.

Working in teams of 10, they formed lines to walk through woods and up and down slopes. They peeped into culverts, peered under parked cars and poked through piles of leaves with sticks. They also looked into the windows of abandoned homes and climbed through the underbrush of some of Charlottesville’s woollier neighborhoods.

Each team spent between two and four hours scouring the area assigned to it, and some teams went out more than once. The Texas-based Laura Recovery Center, which organized the three-day search, anticipates as many as 1,000 people could repeat the effort today.

Click link to read the story – http://www.roanoke.com/news/roanoke/wb/225432

One said she has had an uncanny ability to find four-leaf clovers since childhood. Another wanted to find anything that could help.
“I feel like it’s better to do something than just to wait around for something to happen,” said Kelly Giltner, a University of Virginia first-year student, on Friday morning as she hiked through forest and thick layers of leaves near Observatory Hill with eight others.

Hundreds of volunteers searched Friday for clues to the disappearance of Morgan D. Harrington, a 20-year-old Virginia Tech student who vanished in Char-lottesville last month.

“If I were in the parents’ situation, I’d want all the help I could get from people,” said Gabriella Chase, an Albemarle County resident.

Click link to read the story – http://www2.dailyprogress.com/cdp/news/local/crime/article/more_aid_in_harrington_hunt/48602/

Volunteers have begun a new effort to find missing Virginia Tech student Morgan Harrington in Charlottesville.

On Friday morning, they began combing the wooded areas around the Copeley Street Bridge where she was last seen.

The three-day search, led by a private organization that helps recover missing children, is working with the Harrington family.

Hundreds of volunteers were briefed before starting their search, with suggestions to look for clothing or jewelry Morgan could have been wearing.

Many of the volunteers not only knew her, but wanted to help try to find her.

A coworker of Morgan’s, Rick Vari, says, “So we can cover all this area, and as long as we don’t find her, then we’ve got a chance to find her some place else.”

Morgan’s parents, Dan and Gil Harrington, say they’re hoping this search will be the one that brings their daughter home safely.

Dan says, “With the Laura Recovery Center coming in, they have expertise in this area and can help augment what the police are already doing to be able to help us look for other areas that would take more time without this kind of resource, and we’re just so grateful it truly is overwhelming.”

View the rest of the story – http://www.whsv.com/news/headlines/69419762.html

The national television program, America’s Most Wanted, will discuss the search for Morgan Harrington on Saturday’s program.

The program begins at 9:00 p.m. on Saturday, November 7, and Morgan’s information will appear shortly after 9:30.

America’s Most Wanted airs nationally on FOX and is instrumental in developing new investigative tips. Please be sure to tell your friends and family about the segment. Thank you!

The search for Morgan Harrington is moving in a different direction. She’s been missing for nearly three weeks.

The Harrington family is working with representatives from the Laura Recovery Center, an organization based in Texas, to search for Morgan.

The Laura Recovery Center for Missing Children was created by a man who’s daughter was kidnapped and murdered. Now, the organization, along with Virginia State Police and dedicated community volunteers will start scouring areas of Charlottesville, in an emotionally charged fight to find Morgan Harrington.

Valley resident Nakia Robinson has been drawn to the mysterious case of Morgan Harrington since it hit the airwaves. She’ll be working closely with other volunteers to help find Morgan.

“I don’t know whether something happened that night and she fell and hasn’t been found, or somebody kidnapped her…you know, you don’t know,” Robinson said.

Click link to read the story – http://www.whsv.com/news/headlines/69364362.html

CHARLOTTESVILLE — Organizers of a three-day search for missing Virginia Tech student Morgan Harrington said Thursday night they anticipate up to 1,000 volunteers could show up here today for the kickoff of the effort. But despite the expected turnout, they are continuing to urge residents around the state to converge on Charlottesville to take part in the search for any trace of the Roanoke County woman.

Thursday night, more than 300 volunteers arrived at Charlottesville’s Cavalier Inn, not far from where the 20-year-old was last seen Oct. 17, to attend a meeting at which organizers briefed them on the logistics of the massive search. Organizers hope to have teams of volunteers out in the neighborhoods, back streets and wooded areas of Charlottesville from 9 a.m. until dark today, Saturday and Sunday.

Click the link to view the story: http://www.roanoke.com/news/roanoke/wb/225305

Please be advised the meeting location for the Morgan Harrington Volunteer Search Party has changed for November 6-8^th. Volunteers must now meet at the Department of Forestry located at:

900 Natural Resources Drive
Charlottesville, Va. 22903

Searches will begin this weekend at 9:00 a.m. on Friday, Saturday and Sunday. Volunteers must be at least 18 years old, must provide photo identification, and are encouraged to dress in comfortable clothing. PLEASE NOTE: Volunteer opportunities include search efforts, paperwork, flyer distribution, food services, and much more.

The location for the community meeting scheduled to begin at 7:00 p.m. tonight, Thursday, November 5^th will remain at the Cavalier Inn’s Jefferson Room in Charlottesville. Information about the search process and procedure will be provided to volunteers at this time. PLEASE NOTE: The community meeting is NOT mandatory to volunteer for the search this weekend.

Parents of Missing Virginia Tech Student Rally Community Support November 6-8th

Roanoke, Va. (November 4, 2009) – Dr. Daniel Harrington and wife Gil, parents of missing Virginia Tech student, Morgan Dana Harrington, announced today the organization of a volunteer community search party to help find their daughter. The 20-year-old woman disappeared October 17 while attending a Metallica concert at the John Paul Jones Arena in Charlottesville, Va. Morgan has long blonde hair, blue eyes, and weighs approximately 120 pounds at 5 foot, 6 inches in height.

The search will begin at 9 a.m. on Friday, November 6, 2009 at the Cavalier Inn in Charlottesville and will reconvene at that hour on Saturday, November 7, and Sunday, November 8. Volunteers must be at least 18 years old, must provide photo identification, and are encouraged to dress in comfortable clothing.

Volunteers are encouraged, but not required, to attend a community meeting at 7 p.m. on Thursday, November 5, 2009 at the Cavalier Inn’s Jefferson Room. Information about the search process and procedure will be provided to volunteers at this time.

“We are truly moved by the ongoing support we have received from friends, community members, the media, Virginia Tech, and many others,” Dr. Harrington said. “This search effort is yet another example of the outpouring of kindness toward Morgan and our entire family that continues to give us all hope.”

“Law enforcement is doing everything in its power to investigate Morgan’s disappearance. We will stop at nothing until she is found, and we are eternally grateful for any additional support communities can offer to help bring our daughter home,” he added.

At the request of friends and supporters, the Harrington family has established the Find Morgan Fund to aid the development of flyers and other print materials, as well as search and rescue initiatives. Contributions may be sent via PayPal through www.FindMorgan.com or sent by mail to the following address:

Find Morgan Fund
P.O. Box 7588
Roanoke, VA 24019

The town meeting and search are being coordinated and facilitated by police authorities and the Laura Recovery Center, a non-profit organization that provides search services. The search helps augment the work of the Virginia State Police, The University of Virginia Police, The Charlottesville Police, and the Albemarle County Police.

For more information about the search for Morgan, visit www.FindMorgan.com and www.LRCF.org.

Anyone with information about Morgan’s whereabouts should contact the Virginia State Police tip hotline at (434) 352-3467 or bci-appomattox@vsp.virginia.gov. The Jefferson Area Crime Stoppers has established a $100,000 reward for information leading to the location and recovery of Morgan. The band Metallica also has added an additional $50,000 reward.

All media inquires may be directed to the family’s media hotline, (202) 973-1330, for immediate assistance.

Click here for a Map and Directions

CHARLOTTESVILLE The family of missing Virginia Tech student Morgan Harrington on Wednesday called on volunteers to join them in a three-day “community search party” that will scour Charlottesville for their daughter.

The Texas-based Laura Recovery Center is organizing the Friday-through-Sunday search. Also, the father of Elizabeth Smart, who was abducted from her Salt Lake City bedroom in June 2002 but was found alive nine months later, arrived in Charlottesville on Wednesday to offer hope and help to the Harringtons as they promote the hunt. Ed Smart called on people to come forward with any helpful information about the whereabouts of Harrington, of Roanoke County.

Click here to read the full story

The father of missing Virginia Tech student Morgan Harrington today announced a volunteer search effort to be conducted this weekend.
 
Roanoke County resident Dan Harrington, along with wife Gil, asked for help from community members in the effort that will take place Friday through Sunday. Harrington did not provide specific details, but said information would soon be posted on the Web site findmorgan.com.

Click here to read the full story

On Monday, the Harrington family announced they’ve established the “Find Morgan Fund.”  We’re told the family will donate any unused funds to charities that assist families of missing persons and other causes Morgan has been directly involved in.

Click here to read the full story

The Harrington family is thanking the community and the nation for their support. A large “thank you” sign sits in their front yard and rests against a tree.

“We’re humbled and so grateful for all the love and support we’ve gotten. We really are,” said Morgan’s mother, Gil.

Every glance at the clock reminds Dan and Gil of the two weeks gone by.

Click here to read the full story

Missing Virginia Tech student Morgan Harrington sustained a facial injury before she vanished from an Oct. 17 concert in Charlottesville, Virginia State Police confirmed Friday.

State police spokeswoman Corinne Geller said investigators didn’t disclose the fact earlier because the injury was consistent with what a person would sustain after falling and doesn’t appear to be related to her disappearance.

Click here to read the full story

The search for Morgan Harrington was taken to Lane Stadium during a primetime football game Thursday night.

Harrington’s been missing since October 19 when she went to a concert at John Paul Jones arena in Charlottesville.

Before the game Thursday, dozens of volunteers passed out thousands of flyers and stickers to fans.

Click here to read the full story

Authorities yesterday released a more detailed timeline of the events leading up to disappearance of Virginia Tech student Morgan Harrington, who was last seen Oct. 17 during a Metallica concert at John Paul Jones Arena.

State Police Lt. Joe Rader said in a press conference yesterday afternoon that he hoped that these new details will help elicit more information from witnesses who might have seen Harrington the night of her disappearance but have not yet come forward.

Click here to read the full story

It’s the kind of national attention no town wants. A beautiful college student goes to a rock concert, somehow becomes separated from her friends, and ends up outside, alone. Unable to reenter UVA’s John Paul Jones Arena because policy prohibits it, she calls her friends and tells them not to worry– that she’ll somehow find her way back to Harrisonburg, an hour away, on her own and without a vehicle or friends to accompany her. 

And then she vanishes.

Her terrified parents desperately want the answer to a question no parent should ever have to ask: where is my child? For State Police investigating her disappearance, the clues, though sparse, paint a grim picture.

Click here to read the full story

The young woman whose disappearance during an October 17 Metallica concert touched off a national search was last seen on a bridge around 9:30 that night near busy Ivy Road. The information came in a Wednesday morning press conference in Charlottesville in which State Police Lieutenant Joe Rader expressed hope that a newly detailed timeline would provoke additional clues from concert-goers and other witnesses.

“Perhaps you saw someone stop a vehicle,” said Rader. “Perhaps you saw this young lady get into a vehicle. Somewhere out there lie the answers or lies the vital link.”

Click here to read the full story

The search for a missing Virginia Tech student continues.

Metallica has pledged $50,000 to aid in the search for 20-year-old Morgan Dana Harrington, who was last seen Oct. 17 outside the John Paul Jones Arena in Charlottesville, Va., following a concert by the venerable metal band.

The reward for her safe return now stands at $150,000, the bulk of which has been put up by Harrington’s parents. On Tuesday, the couple will appear on Today to make a plea for help in finding their daughter. They have also set up a website, FindMorgan.com.

Click here to read the full story

Search Continues for Morgan Harrington

RICHMOND – Investigators are hopeful that a $100,000 reward will help generate new leads in the disappearance of Morgan Dana Harrington, 20, of Roanoke. The Jefferson Area Crime Stoppers has established a $100,000 reward for information leading to the location and recovery of Miss Harrington. The public is encouraged to call Crime Stoppers at 434-977-4000 or the Virginia State Police at 434-352-3467 or University of Virginia Police at 434-924-7166 with information about Miss Harrington.

Jefferson Area Crime Stoppers is a not-for-profit group of citizens against crime that assists the following local law enforcement agencies in solving crimes: University of Virginia Police Department, Albemarle County Police Department, Albemarle County Sheriff’s Department, Charlottesville Police Department, Charlottesville Sheriff’s Department, Fluvanna County Sheriff’s Department, Wintergreen Police Department and Virginia State Police.

Throughout the weekend and Monday, Virginia State Police and University of Virginia Police continued to pursue various tips and information related to the ongoing investigation. On Saturday (Oct. 24), investigators and state police troopers handed out fliers featuring a photograph of Miss Harrington and a brief description about her disappearance on the night of Oct.17, 2009. Miss Harrington’s photograph was also displayed on the Wahoo-Tron during the UVA football game this weekend in an effort to encourage people to come forward with any potential leads.

Miss Harrington was attending a Metallica concert on the night of Oct. 17, 2009, at the John Paul Jones Arena in Charlottesville,Va., when she became separated from her friends. She ended up outside the arena and was unable to re-enter the facility. Investigators have been able to locate and interview various individuals who recall seeing Miss Harrington outside in the vicinity of the arena that night between 8:30 p.m. and 9:30 p.m.  Her purse and cell phone were found in a parking area near the arena Sunday morning.

Miss Harrington was last seen wearing a black T-shirt with “Pantera” written on the front in tan letters. She also had on a black mini-skirt with black tights and knee-high black boots. She is 5 feet 6 inches tall and weighs approximately 120 pounds with blond hair and blue eyes.

New State Police Tip Line Number for Public to Call: (434) 352-3467

RICHMOND – New potential leads and tips from around the country continue to pour in to the Virginia State Police and University of Virginia (UVA) Police in regards to the disappearance of 20-year-old Morgan Dana Harrington of Roanoke, Va. The search and subsequent investigation are being conducted by the Virginia State Police and University of Virginia Police in conjunction with Charlottesville Police, Albemarle County Police and Virginia Tech Police. CSX Railroad investigations have also been assisting with this case.

On Saturday, Oct. 17, 2009, Miss Harrington and a friend traveled from Virginia Tech in Blacksburg, Va., to James Madison University (JMU) in Harrisonburg, Va., to meet up with another friend. They then travelled to John Paul Jones Arena at UVA in Charlottesville, Va., to attend a Metallica concert that same evening.

During the course of the concert, she became separated from her friends when she left to use the restroom. Investigators have confirmed that she ended up outdoors and was unable to re-enter the arena. She telephoned her friends at approximately 8:40 p.m. to tell them she could not get back into the facility and she would make arrangements to get a ride.

Investigators have been able to locate and interview various individuals who recall seeing Miss Harrington outside in the vicinity of the arena that night between 8:30 p.m. and 9:30 p.m. Her abandoned purse and cell phone were found in a nearby parking area Sunday morning (Oct. 18) by a passerby and were turned in to the University of Virginia Police. Harrington was reported missing by her parents Sunday afternoon (Oct. 18).

More than 100 tips have been received as of Wednesday afternoon (Oct. 21). Investigators have reviewed surveillance video from the arena and businesses within the immediate area. At this time, the videos reveal nothing relevant to the investigation.

Miss Harrington was last seen wearing a black T-shirt with “Pantera” written on the front in tan letters. She also had on a black mini-skirt with black tights and knee-high black boots. She is 5 feet 6 inches tall and weighs approximately 120 pounds with blond hair and blue eyes.

The public is still encouraged to call or e-mail with any information concerning Miss Harrington and/or her whereabouts. A new Virginia State Police Tip Line phone number has been established (434) 352-3467. (This new number replaces the previous one). Information can also be e-mailed to state police at bci-appomattox@vsp.virginia.gov. UVA Police can be reached at (434) 924-7166.

Morgan Dana Harrington ought to have arrived at her parents’ Roanoke, Va., home Sunday afternoon, as she did most weekends, but when the 20-year-old Virginia Tech student did not show up, her parents quickly knew something was wrong.

Harrington, an education major, was last seen Saturday night. She mysteriously disappeared when she became separated from two friends at a Metallica concert at the University of Virginia.

Police found her purse, with her ID and cell phone, in the parking lot of the University of Virginia’s John Paul Jones Arena in Charlottesville — but there was no trace of the young woman.

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Police Still Seeking Public’s Help in Locating Missing Person

RICHMOND – Virginia State Police and University of Virginia (UVA) Police are following up on numerous leads regarding the joint investigation into the disappearance and whereabouts of a Virginia Tech student.

Local and state police have been searching for Morgan Dana Harrington, 20, of Roanoke County, Va., since she was reported missing by her parents Sunday, Oct. 18, 2009.

Miss Harrington was last seen Saturday night, Oct. 17, 2009. On Saturday, Miss Harrington and a friend had traveled from Virginia Tech to James Madison University in Harrisonburg, Va., to meet up with a friend. They then traveled to John Paul Jones Arena at UVA in Charlottesville, Va., to attend a music concert that same evening. During the course of the concert, she became separated from her friends and was unable to reunite with them.

Miss Harrington was last seen wearing a black T-shirt with “Pantera” written on the front in tan letters. She also had on a black mini-skirt with black tights and knee-high black boots. She is 5 feet 6 inches tall and weighs approximately 120 pounds with blond hair and blue eyes. Miss Harrington does not have an identification or her cell phone with her.

Miss Harrington is currently a junior at Virginia Tech in Blacksburg, Va., majoring in education.

The public is still encouraged to call or e-mail with any information concerning Miss Harrington and/or her whereabouts. Virginia State Police can be reached (434) 352-3435 or by e-mail at bci-appomattox@vsp.virginia.gov. UVA Police can be reached at (434) 924-7166.

MEDIA NOTE: Two photos of Miss Harrington are available for download on the Virginia State Police Web site…under the “NEWSROOM” heading: www.vsp.virginia.gov.