As part of an ongoing effort to keep interest in the search for missing Homer woman Anesha “Duffy” Murnane, her family and friends will hold a community conversation on the theme “Responding to Trauma,” from 5:30-6:30 p.m. today via the Zoom app and a call-in phone number.
Community member and Green Dot trainer Jessi Felice will provide information on the Green Dot Bystander Intervention program. This educational approach aims to prevent violence with the help of bystanders standing up for others, and is similar to the idea of “see something, say something,” except this model is “see something, do something.” Felice has been offering Green Dot trainings to students at local schools and currently, to community members weekly online.
During this presentation, Felice will discuss common barriers to action and how individuals can learn to be proactive and help others, in spite of these personal barriers. The presentation will be 45 minutes long, with 15 minutes for questions at the end. To join the conversation, download the Zoom app ahead of time and come in with this link: https://us04web.zoom.us/j/77929043716?pwd=YmFjRWFlODNab21UVnk3SDE5K2owZz09 or call 1-346-248-7799 to join. For more information specific to this Green Dot community conversation, contact Christina Whiting at 907-435-7969.
Murnane, 38, has been missing since Oct. 17, 2019, after she was last seen in a security camera image leaving her Main Street apartment. Murnane’s mother is Sara Berg and her stepfather is Ed Berg.
Murnane disappeared after leaving her Main Street apartment for an appointment at the SVT Health & Wellness clinic on East End Road. The last confirmed sighting is a security camera photo showing her leaving the Maintree Apartments, a supported housing complex, about 12:15 p.m. that day. Murnane had a 1 p.m. appointment at SVT Health and Wellness Center, about a 1-mile walk from her home. She did not show up for that appointment.
Homer Police and Alaska State Troopers issued a Silver Alert for Murnane on Oct. 19 after she was reported missing that day. Anyone with information on her whereabouts can call Homer Police at 907-235-3150 or the Silver Alert hotline at 855-SILVR99 or 855-745-8799. A Silver Alert is for an adult considered a vulnerable person.
Murnane was wearing a blue jacket, light-blue shirt and blue jeans the last time she was seen. She is almost 6 feet tall, weighs about 160 pounds and has shoulder-length brown hair and blue eyes. She carried a pink-and-black plaid purse with a shoulder strap and carried her wallet, cell phone and identification. Police said she does not drive or own a vehicle and got around by walking. Earlier this month the family released a photo taken before her disappearance that shows Murnane wearing that same jacket and carrying that purse.
The weekend after Murnane went missing, search and rescue dog teams from Anchorage tracked her in the downtown area, picking up scents from Main Street to Lee Drive, Svedlund Street, Pioneer Avenue and Kachemak Way. Search dogs followed strong scents to Pioneer Avenue area near Cosmic Kitchen, in front of Homer’s Jeans and the Kachemak Bay Campus. There the dogs acted as if there had been what search dog handlers call a “car pick up.”
The Bergs have said they believed their daughter has been abducted.
Reach Michael Armstrong at marmstrong@homernews.com.
