Caravan to Catch a Killer tour #25-Driving with Britt on Route 66-Mothers' loads on the Mother Road

 This first week of #drivingwithbrittonroute66 on the 25th Caravan to Catch a Killer tour, has been such a gift. Start off at Tulsa under the Route 66 Span and singing Bridge with local families, then stops in Vinita OK, Joplin, Springfield Missouri and St. Louis. Each stop had gifts whether meeting with families, Advocacy groups and podcasts. St. Louis was the first large Route 66 family meeting of Illinois and Missouri families and WHAT A SHOWING!!! This group has now formed and will have monthly support meetings and develop advocacy. THIS IS WHAT THESE TOURS ARE ABOUT!!!!

On to Springfield/Bloomington Illinois area next for a week and then Chicago. LET ME KNOW IF YOU KNOW MISSING OR COLD CASE FAMILIES ALONG THIS ROUTE (or even elsewhere).

I have now traveled 350000 miles through 48 States with more than 300 local reporters sharing the stories of the girl next door, the boy next door, the man next door, the woman next door hidden in shadows.

Caravan tours started in 2007 as we had hundreds of suspects compared to one DNA profile and not matching. Brittany's case was middle class, in middle America and not a sensational twist and national news did not seem interested so I somehow designed this idea of taking her story cross country. The first ten years  , it was more about seeing if other states had similar cases but as I met more and more cold case families along the routes I realized I needed to help give them voice. Thus for the last ten years I have met families along the route, helping them network, get voice, help pass laws. Yes I am on Route 66 now but in between working I take tours everywhere. Come visit me at Facebook.com/mom.missing.brittany. Let me kn ow your story.

Take a picture, send it to me. I have maps I made and will post on these. YOU ALL HAVE A PLACE IN MY HEART!!!!

Driving with Britt on Route 66--Mothers load on the Mother Road

 First few days on the 25th Caravan to Catch a Killer tour!!! This four to five week phase from Tulsa to Chicago on Route 66 . Meeting, (hopefully) with cold case families-Murder, missing, abducted, etc along the road. I have covered 350000 miles through 48 States on now 25 tours, first only seeking attention to our murder when in the first 5 years we turned over hundreds of suspects with no match to our DNA or other evidence.

Yet, as I traveled I met more and more families impacted by this never ending loss. Thus over the last 10 years, the tours have been more about connecting to other families, giving them voice, helping them create support networks and learning about laws that can help survivors and their cases!!!!

Why Route 66? The building of Route 66 was, at times called the culture of calamity. This was due to the trials and tribulations, roadblocks, losses, how before thee road it was separation of families and during the building, separation of families.

The path of cold case families is similar but it is our connection that brings voices across the US. Contact me here or on Facebook.com/mom.missing.brittany or through therapoet@aol.com. I am also a trauma focused psychologist for more than 35 years way before the loss of Brittany but I still had to go through the loss, the grief, the anger and all the emotions but I knew I had to walk towards it not away. I also knew, though hard, I had to live because of the loss, in honor of the loss and in spite of the loss. 

Everyone I meet on the road has a place in my heart.

In Springfield MO through Friday, then St. Louis and the Chicago area but contact me where ever you are!