I have been pretty shaken up by the Shane Montgomery case; I can only imagine how shaken up those who actually knew him have been. For those living under a rock, Shane Montgomery is a 21-year-old West Chester student whom disappeared along Main Street in Manayunk (specifically right outside of Kildaire's) early Thanksgiving morning. The out-pouring of support has been awesome, and so, too, have the stories about him and/or his family since his disappearance.
For me, over the past week, this strange happenstance has been brought up in conversation at least a half-a-dozen times. "Did you hear about Shane?!"..."What do you think happened?!"..."Where could he be?!"..."Where were his friends?!"...etc. All great questions. All hard to answer. I'll get to some of those shortly.
I really fear for Shane. I mean, of course, who wouldn't? It's been 7 days. The possibilities are endless. If Shane was taken, which is a definite possibility, he could be anywhere IN THE COUNTRY (in the world, even) by now. It depressed me to see after the first couple days to see law-enforcement searching in the murky waters of the Schuylkill, because if they found him in there, then he's certainly not alive. At this point, I actually hope that he was taken, because if he WAS taken, the chances of him being alive increase. I don't know why anyone would have taken Shane, that part doesn't make any sense, but at least there is then the potential that he's alive. This whole thing sounds like an episode of Without A Trace. One moment, everything is fine with a person, and the next moment they're gone with no one having a clue as to the "why" or the "how."
This brings us to the questions previously posed. I am not sure what happened to Shane, but there's one thing we definitely know: Shane was drunk. No, we have no idea how drunk. We also have no idea why he was leaving the bar alone (at least, that's what has been reported), so the question I also had and still have is "Where were his friends?" This is a really difficult time, and by NO MEANS am I trying to put blame on the people he was with for this. (For those reading this that know Shane or was with Shane that night, PLEASE do not blame yourself for this. It's not your fault. We have no idea where he is, but whatever happened is NOT your fault.) That said, when we're drunk, whether we're driving a car or not, we can be a danger to ourselves and others. A buddy system is always encouraged. I know we know this, and I know this is a crazy situation, but no one should be outside alone and drunk. When someone you know is stumbling out of a packed bar by themselves, it's very hard to know where anyone you know is. But I do find it weird that he was alone right around closing time. No matter the outcome, let this be a lesson to all of us.
I will say that Manayunk is a pleasure to be around. I visited the Grape Room a few months ago for a birthday party (and enjoyed it so much that I'm about to have a show there with my band in a couple weeks), and I had TONS of fun down there. I also noticed how safe I felt leaving the bar at night, because the lights along Main Street are pretty bright, and cars, including a swath of law enforcement, are always driving up and down the block. THAT is why I am, and I'm sure many others are, baffled.
What do I think happened? Well, like I previously stated: I hope he was taken, and I believe he was, too. If Shane was as drunk as reported, someone in a car could have pulled up to him, asked if he needed a ride, and Shane may not have had the wherewithal to know what he was doing or who was in the car, and entered (Yes, he could have also just been completely abducted, too). If this is true, we need to start looking in the fridge, behind the sink, and on top of the ceiling fan...in other words, we can keep looking in places close by, but I think it would do the search well to extend far beyond close-by counties.
Shane needs all of us to start thinking like super-sleuths. Yes, we all want to paint a great picture of Shane, and I have no doubt he's a great guy, but we need to start thinking about who he knows and who he might have wronged in his past. Could have a past ex or someone else that he had a previous altercation with been at or by the bar during that night? Can anyone remember if they saw someone who looked like a threat, or someone who looked like they were stalking Shane throughout the night--waiting for him to be alone? These are crazy things to think about, but right now, they're very relevant to Shane and his family's lives.
I am worried, but my gut is telling me he's out there waiting to be found alive.
Wherever you are, Shane, don't quit. The cavalry is coming.
- PatInTheHat
No comments:
Post a Comment