ALEXANDRIA LOWITZER - 16 yo(2010) - Spring (N of Houston) TX

I feel that this is not going to turn out good. I cant imagine what these parents are going thru. I think that LE should have stepped it up since her phone has not been used. I hope it turns out that she just ran away but we see too many horrific cases like this every day on this blog. I hope she comes homes.

“Someone out there knows something and I just simply ask that they contact someone, anyone.” –
John Lowitzer.

Ali Lowitzer disappeared on the afternoon of April 26, 2010 shortly after getting off of her
school bus in Spring. No one has heard from her
since. Ali’s family will join together with the Laura Recovery Center and the Mayor’s Crime Victims office for a
prayer vigil on Thursday, June 17, 2010.
The prayer vigil will be held in front of Houston City Hall beginning at 7:00 pm on the 17^th.
The purpose of the vigil is to heighten
community awareness and to build support for the efforts to find 16 year old Ali.
The vigil will feature several keynote speakers including local Pastors, Andy Kahan from the
Mayor’s Crime Victim’s office, Harris County Constable for Precinct 6; Victor
Trevino and a representative from the Laura Recovery Center.

To learn more about Ali visit the Bring Home Ali Lowitzer Facebook page.

Ali’s father, John Lowitzer added the following post on Facebook today:

"Somebody out there
knows something and I just simply
ask that they contact someone, anyone and give information. Don't be
afraid. This is not about who did it,
it's about the safety and well being of a 16 year old girl. It's about
having comfort in knowing. At least let someone know if she's ok. Please allow
us to begin the road to healing. We're anxious to hear something. Anything.
If it were your family member I would think you'd want the same. Please, I beg you.
If you are out there and have knowledge of her whereabouts or any information,
please tell someone.” – John Lowitzer

The Laura Recovery Center exists to prevent abductions and
runaways and to recover missing children by fostering a Triangle of
Trust among law enforcement, community and a missing child's family.

On the steps of Houston's City Hall tonight will be a prayer vigil for a
missing teenager.
Alexandria Lowitzer, 16, vanished on April 26. She was last seen exiting
a school bus just a few blocks from her home. Her parents don't think
she ran away because most of her belongings were left at home, including
a purse with money inside. With the vigil tonight, Lowitzer's
parents hope to bring more attention to their plight. They will be
joined by members of the Laura Recovery Center, the head of the mayor's
crime victim's office, and Precinct 6 Constable Victor Trevino. That
vigil starts at 7pm.

Someone, somewhere, knows something.

At a prayer vigil for
missing children in front of Houston City Hall June 17, John Lowitzer,
father of missing Spring girl Alexandria Lowitzer, 16, implored anyone
who may have any information about what happened to his daughter, or
where she may be, to step forward.

“This is my baby girl. If
anybody out there knows anything, please speak up, say something,” he
pleaded. “You don’t have to give your name - just tell us where Ali is.”

Alexandria
disappeared after stepping off her school bus April 26, leaving behind a
paycheck from her job, her purse with money inside and her constant
companion, her cell phone. Authorities still have no leads regarding her
whereabouts.


Andy Kahan, the mayor’s crime victims assistance director for
the city of Houston, said statistics form the National Center for
Missing and Exploited Children showed that 28 children went missing from
Texas in 2009, and 81 over a 5-year period.

“According to the
U.S. Department of Justice, 797,500 children under the age of 18 were
reported missing in a one-year-period [nationwide] - that’s an average
of 2,185 each day,” he added. “Yet we hold out hope. With perseverance,
persistence and law enforcement assistance we can bring these [children]
back home to their families.”

The Laura Recovery Center, a
non-profit organization launched in Friendswood by Bob and Gaye Smither
after the abduction and murder of their 12-year-old daughter Laura in
1997, has spent the weeks since Ali’s disappearance organizing volunteer
search parties to comb acres of woods near the Lowitzer home and
distribute fliers with Ali’s picture.

“We are here tonight in
hope - hope that a young girl will return home safely; hope that she’s
alive and well; hope that her family, friends and community will
continue to search until she is found,” said Bob Walcutt, executive
director at Laura Recovery Center. “ Hope is a fragile thing. It is
built on love, time and faith, but it can be destroyed by gossip, rumors
and flat-out lies. Families dealing with a missing child face many
hurdles. They must first face the fact that their child is missing. They
must convince the authorities of the seriousness of the situation, and
finally, they must work hard, day and night, to bring their child home.
And sometimes the only thing they have is hope.”

Precinct 6
Constable Victor Trevino, whose office is not investigating the Ali
Lowitzer case in an official capacity but who offered his assistance and
support to the family, said a review of law enforcement policies
regarding missing and runaway children may be in order to ensure all
children, regardless of the reason or circumstances of their
disappearance, are brought home safely.

“Sometimes it’s not about
pointing fingers, or being judgmental, or critical. Sometimes we just
have to be part of the solution and try to help each other out. There
will be time for an assessment, an analysis, an evaluation - later,” he
said. “In law enforcement, we try to do the best we can but sometimes we
fall short. maybe we do have to re-evaluate how we look at each child
as a runaway or as being abducted. Even if it is a runaway, that child
might still be endangered. Whether the child went willingly or not, that
child still needs us - it’s a child. Someone may have coerced or conned
that child. We need to reevaluate our priorities and do a better job.”

Kahan
appealed to parents, challenging them to become more involved in their
children’s lives and monitor their activities, friends and emotional
states.

“Stop being their friend - be their parent,” he urged.
“Be nosy. Check into what they’re doing. Let them know whose homes they
can visit, let them know whose vehicles they can ride in. Tell them to
stay away from pools, creeks, or any large body of water unless there’s
an adult present. Parents, don’t use the mall as a babysitter. Malls are
dangerous. Make sure your kids know what their curfew is and check in
with you when they’re going to be late. Child safety is important
year-round, but right now, during the summer months, it is especially
important. Practice simple, basic parenting skills.”

Community
involvement in missing person cases is critical, Trevino said. Law
enforcement, with its limited resources, cannot do the job alone. He
asked that area residents assist police by being “the eyes and ears” of
law enforcement.

Kahan commended Kingwood resident Ira
Kettles-Lemiska, who started a Facebook group page to help educate the
community about the missing children issue, for taking a proactive role
in promoting awareness.

“Here is someone who saw what was going
on, and instead of yelling and screaming about the injustices of the
world, she took action,” he said. “I loved one of her comments [on
Facebook] - she said parents are in denial, and they must be educated to
minimize the risk and the opportunity to become a victim. She’s a great
example of someone who’s making a difference in the lives of others.
What we do in life echoes in eternity. Never doubt that a small group of
people can make a difference.”

With community involvement and
dogged persistence, Walcutt said, missing children can be found - even
years after their disappearance, when all hope seems to be lost.

“[Tuesday
night] about midnight I got a call from a family that had been waiting
three years to hear from a missing girl. For them, the ordeal is over.
For others, it is just beginning,” he said. “Tonight I ask that you do
your part to help keep hope alive. Go to the Laura Recovery Center
website and e-mail all your friends a flier of a missing child. Ask them
to e-mail it to all their friends. By doing this, maybe, in 24 hours,
we can bring another missing child home. Do your part. Keep hope alive.”

John
Lowitzer expressed his appreciation to law enforcement, the Laura
Recovery Center, friends and family for their support. In a special
message to his daughter - and all the other missing children whose
parents so desperately are waiting for news - he choked on tears as he
begged her to come home.

“We want our baby girl back. Ali, if
you’re out there, baby, come home,” he said. “I love you. We all love
you. You have a lot of love and support behind you. It’s time to come
home. Chasity, it’s time to come home. Everybody, it’s time to come
home.”

For more information about Laura Recovery Center, please
visit www.lrcf.org.

Anyone with
information regarding a missing child is asked to call Crime Stoppers
at 713-222-TIPS.

:O( Still no updates.

Their nights have been sleepless, their days filled with worry, and their efforts relentless.
John and Jo Ann Lowitzer want their daughter back.
Alexandria
“Ali” Lowitzer, 16, disappeared after getting off the school bus near
her home in Spring April 26. Her parents haven’s seen her since.
“We get leads all the time,” said John. “They’re just all dead ends.”
Numerous sightings of Ali have been reported in the months
since her disappearance, but so far the girls have all turned out to be
look-alikes.
“We never thought Ali looked like anyone else, but
evidently there are a lot of girls her age who have the same haircut,
wear the same style makeup and clothing,” Jo Ann said. “As unique as she
tried to be on a daily basis, there are a lot of girls who look like
her.”
Authorities have Ali listed as a runaway due to a lack of
evidence that would suggest otherwise, but the Lowitzers adamantly
maintain their daughter did not run away.
“We don’t believe that
for one second,” John said. “That’s been the biggest obstacle, trying to
convince people that she’s not a runaway. Ali is also somewhat
classified as endangered and missing, but we can’t get it past that. If
we could, we’d have Amber Alerts, a lot more resources on our hands,
even the Texas Rangers.”
Since April, Ali’s parents have
organized numerous private search parties with the help of the Laura
Recovery Center, combed woods and neighborhoods, distributed fliers and
even teamed up with a private investigator. Still, no trace of Ali.
Jo
Ann and John believe someone, somewhere, has information on Ali’s
whereabouts. The couple currently offers a $5,000 award to anyone who
can help bring Ali home. To no avail.
On September 18, the family
will hold a fundraiser, with proceeds going toward the continuation of
search parties, the financing of fliers and other media, and to raise
the award for tips leading to the recovery of Ali.
“Unfortunately,
money talks,” John said. “Hopefully, someone who knows something might
find it a little more enticing to come forward. Someone has to know
where she is.”

ONE DAY AT A TIME

The Lowitzers
say their efforts to find their daughter have not waned, but they worry
that Ali’s name and photo is slowly fading from the public’s
consciousness.
“For me this has gotten more difficult as time
goes on. In the beginning, there were a lot of people around,” said
John. “We felt all that support. But right now everything is very quiet.
The wheels don’t turn as fast, and we feel things slowing a little.”
The
first day back to school was especially heartbreaking for Ali’s
parents, as they watched other kids get on school buses, decked out in
new clothes and bearing down under new backpacks and school supplies.
Then listening to friends and coworkers as they described their own
children’s first day back in school.
“I kept thinking she was
supposed to be on that bus,” John said. “You never think you’d miss the
school shopping, the school supplies. Until your child’s missing. Ali
loved to go to school.”
At home, the teen’s room remains
undisturbed. The door stands slightly open, waiting for Ali to enter her
sanctuary, the part of the house she was allowed to decorate to her own
liking. The day she disappeared, her parents found their daughter’s
phone charger in its place, her purse and money still in Ali’s room.
The
Lowitzers describe their daughter as an artistic child who loves to
paint, listen to music, and sing. She rarely socialized outside her home
and liked to invite friends to visit at her house instead.
“She
was goofy; just a kid,” said John. “She liked to make us laugh. She had
her teenage moments, but she didn’t have a bad home life.”

TAKING INITIATIVE

The Lowitzers say to their knowledge, one Harris County Sheriff’s Office homicide detective is currently assigned to Ali’s case.
“We’re
as close with the police as they allow us to be,” said John. “Sometimes
they call us, but I wish they would keep in closer contact with us. And
law enforcement needs to talk to each other. I don’t know if the
sheriff’s office is talking to Precinct 4, HPD. I think they need to
collaborate more.”
John said the recent publicized arrest of a
man who attempted to abduct a child in New Caney prompted him to scour
the woods near the suspect’s home on his own, accompanied by a private
investigator who took on Ali’s case on a pro bono basis.
“Has
that guy done it before? In what area?,” John wanted to know. “We went
to the area where he lives and went into the woods to see if we can find
anything about Ali. We hear about things like that and we do it
ourselves, ask questions. We can’t wait for law enforcement.”
With
nothing new to report in connection with Ali’s disappearance, no new
leads to go on, local media coverage has dissipated, John said, making
it even more difficult to keep the effort to find Ali in the public eye.
“That’s
another reason for the benefit on September 18 - we’re hoping it will
be large enough to rekindle the effort and let people know shes’ still
missing and there’s still a huge effort out there to find her,” he said.
Meanwhile,
the rumor mill is brewing. On a regular basis, the Lowitzers are
confronted with public misconceptions that Ali has been found - dead or
alive.
“Right before school let out we were dealing with rumors
that her body has been found in a ditch,” Jo Ann said. “Now that school
is back in session, the buzz is that Ali is back home. It’s
frustrating.”
In August, the Lowitzers sent Alis picture out in
Valpak, hoping to reach residents in different areas of Harris County.
They listed their daughter with every missing persons website
imaginable, and received reports that some fliers of Ali have made it as
far as California and Florida.
Until she comes home, we need
that exposure,” said John. “We are going to search east coast to west
coast. We’re not leaving anything to chance. You never know - she could
be in another state. until we know something, I feel that’s what we have
to do.”
The endless wait is excruciating. With every day that goes by, the Lowitzers renew their resolve to find their daughter.
Whether Ali is a runaway or met with a worse fate, John says the fears and worries are the same.
“My
whole world would change with a simple phone call,” he said. “At least I
would know she’s still alive. Not knowing if their child is ok is the
worst feeling a parent can have. Ali, we love you. Very much.”

Parents of Missing Teen Hold Fundraiser


Updated: Wednesday, 15 Sep 2010, 5:29 PM CDT
Published : Wednesday, 15 Sep 2010, 4:31 PM CDT

• 
  FORD ATKINSON
  Reporter
  

SPRING, Texas - The parents of a missing Spring teenager are holding a fundraiser this weekend to help them bring attention to the case. Alexandria Lowitzer, 16, vanished last April after getting off a school bus. The Spring High School student was walking to her job at a restaurant when she disappeared, her father, John Lowitzer, says. The Harris County Sheriff's Department considers the teen a probable runaway because there's no evidence of foul play. But her father insists Alexandria did not runaway. "She had a good home life," John Lowitzer says. The Sheriff's Department has assigned only one investigator to the case because there is no evidence to pursue. "It' frustrating," Lowitzer says. The fundraiser is scheduled for Saturday, September 18th, at the Spring Tavern, 24401 Aldine Westfield Road in Spring.http://www.myfoxhouston.com/dpp/news/local/100915-parents-of-missing-teen-hold-fundraiser

Alexandria Lowitzer, a resident of Northwest Houston, has been described by many as a typical 16-year-old.

She was involved in a softball team, held down a job at the Burger Barn, balanced her time between school and a social life and talked of plans for the future.

On April 26 2010, the teenager called her mother before getting on the school bus and said she was going to collect her paycheck from her job.

Six months later, the pay stub has yet to be retrieved.

“I got home from work and we usually text by then. After not hearing from her I went up, just before 9 (p.m.), to the Burger Barn and it was closed,” Lowitzer’s mother, Jo Ann Lowitzer, said. “That’s when I started to panic.”

The mother of two said she tried to locate Alexandria frantically without no avail. She contacted her daughter’s father and friends; however, no one had heard from the teen, according to Jo Ann Lowitzer.

She finally went over to Alexandria’s boyfriend’s house only to discover that he had been suffering the same road block, she said.

According to a study by the United States Department of Justice, 797,500 children (younger than 18-years-old) were reported missing in the span of one year which correlates to 2,185 children being absent from home each day.

Local families continue to be torn a part as 206 Texas adolescents can be found on the National Center of Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC) database.

“It’s been terrible. Not knowing is the worse feeling for me,” Jo Ann Lowitzer said in between sobs. “I have to have hope and keep doing anything and everything I can do to find her.”

She has remained true to her word and has enlisted 100 volunteers for ground searches, hosted local benefits, kayaked through Cypress Creek, made calendars and even devoted a page to her daughter’s discovery on Facebook.

With the help of friends and neighbors, the Lowitzer family has been able to raise and offer a $10,000 reward in Alexandria’s honor.

“She spoke her mind and was very outgoing,” Sharon Sligh, a resident who has been active in the fundraising efforts, said. “The weekend before her disappearance she was at Girl Scout camp. She was just a good girl.”

Surveillance footage, which has recently been obtained, shows that Alexandria did in fact board the school bus; however, all evidence ends there as the fellow bus riders don’t recall her whereabouts, according to reports.

Contrary to Jo Ann Lowitzer’s beliefs, the case is being categorized as a runaway due to no signs of foul play, she said.

“The criteria we look for to differentiate between a runaway and an abduction is evidence, history of the children and if there’s any foul play involved,” Sgt. Doug Thomas of the Harris County Sheriff’s Office Missing Persons Unit.

The fact that Alexandria’s home was only three houses down from the bus stop, which was only a quarter of a mile away from the burger shop, has left many in the community wary of their surroundings.

“I have two teenage girls of my own so I worry about them,” Sligh said. “I’m very adamant that they’re not walking around because it doesn’t matter where it is. Alli just got off a school bus and then vanished.”

NCMCE’s national lost hotline has managed more than 2.5 million calls, according to the organization. However, Thomas said many residents are still unaware that they can report a missing individual at anytime.

“Do not wait. Call us immediately,” he said. “There is no waiting period for missing persons. It’s very important that people know that.”

For Alexandria’s mother, not a day goes by that she doesn’t long to see her daughter, Jo Ann Lowitzer said.

“I think somebody took her. If she ran away she would’ve contacted me by now.

“For her to take off on her own free will without anything of her own is just not like her,” she said. “I know something is wrong. A mom just knows.”

HOUSTON (KTRK) -- Six months ago Tuesday was the last time anyone saw 16-year-old Ali Lowitzer. Related Content

Story: Prayer vigil tonight for missing Spring teenMore: Help find Alexandria LowitzerStory: Group to search again for missing teenStory: Laura Recovery Center joins in search for missing teenStory: Search to begin for teen missing since last weekStory: Six months later, Spring teen still missingMore: Got a story idea? Let us know!
Investigators say she got off the bus three doors down from her house and was supposed to walk to work, but never made it there. So far, all leads in this case have lead to dead ends. Related Photos

Spring High School student Alexandria LowitzerView all 4 photos
Her family is now offering a $10,000 reward for any information that will lead them to her.
http://abclocal.go.com/ktrk/story?section=news/local&id=7747818

http://www.missingkids.com/missingkids/servlet/PubCaseSearchServlet?act=viewChildDetail&LanguageCountry=en_US&searchLang=en_US&caseLang=en_US&orgPrefix=NCMC&caseNum=1146491&seqNum=1
Endangered Runaway
ALEXANDRIA LOWITZER


DOB: Feb 3, 1994
Missing: Apr 26, 2010
Age Now: 16
Sex: Female
Race: White
Hair: Brown
Eyes: Blue
Height: 5'2" (157 cm)
Weight: 145 lbs (66 kg)
Missing From:
SPRING
TX
United States


Both photos shown are of Alexandria. Her ears and nose are pierced. Alexandria wears braces on her teeth. When she was last seen, her hair was dyed dark red. Alexandria may go by the nickname Ali, Alex or AJ.
ANYONE HAVING INFORMATION SHOULD CONTACT
National Center for Missing & Exploited Children
1-800-843-5678 (1-800-THE-LOST)
Harris County Sheriff's Office (Texas) 1-713-221-6000

=============================
and she has braces - think of all the appointments she has missed

The family of Ali Lowitzer is still searching for answers, seven months after the teenager disappeared.Ali’s father, John Lowitzer, admits that he struggles with his feelings."In some sense, you lose faith because of the evil things that are out there," said John Lowitzer, "but you gain a sense of humanity."Surveillance video showed the 16-year old as she got off the bus at Low Ridge Road on April 26. She was wearing a dark hooded sweatshirt, a white t-shirt, and checkered jeans. She was also carrying a checkered multi-colored backpack.Ali was never seen again.The holidays have brought a new sense of sadness, which began when family members asked Jo Ann Lowitzer about their Thanksgiving plans."I said, ‘yes we’ll have Thanksgiving as usual,’" said Jo Ann Lowitzer as she choked back tears.The Lowitzers have been working to put Ali’s picture in display ads on shopping carts throughout the area. The family hopes people will slow down long enough during the holiday rush to look and, possibly, help."If she can’t be here, then I pray that she’s safe wherever she is," said John Lowitzer. "That’s the best I could hope for."A $10,000 reward will be given for information that leads to an arrest in Ali’s case. You can call the Laura Recovery Center toll free at 1-866-898-5723 or email them at recovery@lrcf.net

April 25, 2011 at 7:50 PM

HOUSTON -- As a Spring couple approaches the
one-year anniversary of their daughter’s disappearance they are holding
on to hope that they will find the 17-year-old girl.

“I do. I have to,” said Ali Lowitzer’s father John Lowitzer. “Until we find some sort of closure it’s going to be hard.”

The teenager disappeared on April 26, 2010. She was last seen getting
off her school bus 30 feet from her house near Low Ridge and Knotty Post
in Spring.

Her parents said she was supposed to head to work at the Burger Barn
less than a quarter mile away to pick up her pay check, but she never
made it.

They said all communication stopped around 3 p.m. that day.

“Somebody knows something, so just say something, this is our daughter,
this is our heart, and I want her back,” said her father.

To say the last year has been hard would be an understatement. The
holidays are the worst for the Lowitzers. They have yet to touch
anything in her room. Her Easter basket from last year still sits on her
desk with the candy still inside.

“It’s right where she left it, exactly the way she left her candy,” said her mother, Jo Ann Lowitzer.

According to a spokesperson for the Harris County Sheriff’s Office, the
investigation into her disappearance is an open and active
investigation. Homicide detectives are on it, but the teen is
officially considered a runaway.

It’s a classification her parents have refuted since her disappearance.

Ali’s parents have their theories and Sunday evening told KHOU 11 News
that they believe she may have known the person who’s behind her
disappearance.

“There are still some things out there that we have suspicions on,
ideas, but we can’t prove anything,” said the teen’s father. “I’d rather
keep that on the down low because it involves individuals and stuff.”

The Lowitzers have taken it upon themselves to keep their daughter’s
face in the public eye. They give flyers to anyone who will take them or
post them. They’ve printed T-shirts and have set up a Facebook page
and the website www.alexandrialowitzer.com, which is dedicated to their daughter.

Tuesday, on the one-year anniversary of the teen’s disappearance, the
Spring Area Youth Softball league will dedicate a picnic table and a
tree to Ali at Beyer Park in Spring. That’s the ball park where Ali
played softball. The dedication ceremony begins at 7:30 p.m.

”My hope is that the right person sees that she’s missing and they tell
her that we’re looking for her and she calls and tells me she’s OK,”
said her mother.

Ali’s parents hope and pray that she will be home for the next holiday. They said they will never stop searching for her.

“That’s my daughter, and she’s the most precious thing in my life, and I’ll never stop,” said her father.
http://www.khou.com/news/local/120667444.html

Dog team to search for missing girl, 16, in Spring

| July 22, 2011 4:11 pm


Alexandria Lowitizer
The Greater Houston Search Dog Team and missing-child advocacy
organization Laura Recovery Center will search a ravine in Spring on
Saturday for a local girl who went missing last year.

Alexandria Lowitizer, 16, went missing on April 26, 2010, after getting
off a school bus near her home on Low Ridge Road in Spring. Multiple
searches have failed to turn up anything, and authorities do not know
what happened to her.

During a search last weekend, a team discovered a "trash-filled ravine"
in a wooded area about a mile from where Alexandria disappeared,
according to a Laura Recovery Center press release.

The team will meet Saturday morning at Northwood Baptist Church, 5803
Treaschwig Road. They will give a short demonstration of the dogs'
search tactics at 8:15 a.m., the release says.
http://www.ultimatespringtx.com/stories/254931-crime-dog-team-to-search-for-missing-girl-16-in-spring