'Philadelphia Missing Persons Day' gives hope to family of missing man

PHILADELPHIA (WPVI) -- An event held on Wednesday gave a renewed sense of hope for families of missing people in Philadelphia.

Several city departments partnered to present "Philadelphia Missing Persons Day," giving loved ones of missing people face-to-face access to detectives looking to crack the cases.

"It's the not knowing," said Yvonne Grier of the angst over her missing brother.

She's been seeking answers for 22 years ever since her brother, Eulace King, disappeared in North Philadelphia.

"May 3, 2003. He went missing a week before Mother's Day and a month before I got married," Grier recalled. "He was scheduled to give me away on my wedding day."

It was like King vanished into thin air.

"The police did find his car," she said. "They said the vehicle was wiped clean."

Grier says a friend told her about Missing Persons Day. She decided to get dressed immediately and show up at the event at Lincoln Financial Field as soon as it began Wednesday morning.

Her brother's disappearance is one of a number of missing persons cases that remain open in Philadelphia, dating as far back as 1940.

"The journey of a missing person is incredibly difficult," said Philadelphia Police Commissioner Kevin Bethel.

The Philadelphia Police Department helped host the free community event, which happens every other year. It provides support and resources to people searching for missing loved ones.

"I would tell those families, 'Don't give up hope. We'll continue to work with them,'" said Bethel.

This was the second time the event had been held. Officials from the medical examiner's office and the police department were on hand to talk to families about their cases.

Commissioner Bethel says that even with so many demands on the police department for current crimes, resources remain dedicated to solving cases of the past.

"The team here in Special Victims, forensics team, they're doing a lot of other work," he said.

Lincoln Financial Field provided the space for the event, which also included emotional support for family members. Grier said being there helped her to provide crucial updates for her brother's case.

"This was an awesome event," she said. "I was able to talk to the detectives. I was able to submit a DNA swab. They didn't have any DNA on file from my brother."

It gives her hope as her family continues to search for answers.

"I believe this is going to be the year that we're going to get the closure," she said.

It'll be two years before the police department hosts another event like this, but officials say there is help available right now for anyone with a missing loved one.

Police urge anyone seeking help with their missing persons case to contact the Philadelphia Police Department's Special Victims Unit.