Searches planned for two women missing since 1988

Lois Hanna and Lisa Maas never met, but they are linked together forever.

The two midwestern Ontario natives both went missing in July of 1988 under suspicious circumstances.

Now, 35 years later, Nick Oldrieve and his team of volunteer searchers and citizen sleuths from Please Bring Me Home are heading back into the wilderness in search of clues into their disappearance.

“With Lois and Lisa specifically at this time, it being 35 years later, we’re looking for scattered remains, we’re looking for clothing. In both of these cases, that’s really the only evidence we have to go on,” said Oldrieve.

Since 2016, Please Bring Me Home has organized more than 30 searches for both Maas and Hanna, as they try to bring closure to the families of the missing women. While they have found clues in those searches, they’ve not located either of them as of yet.

“Even by not locating them, it’s still evidence that we add to the pile. We can say with certainty they are not in this location. It narrows down the search area each time,” he said.

On July 2, volunteer searchers will be combing an area near Holyrood, Ont., for Lois Hanna.

On July 16, Oldrieve is looking for a lot of volunteers to cover six locations near Owen Sound, Ont., in search of Lisa Maas.

“That one we need a lot of volunteers for. We want, at minimum, 115 people,” he said.

Oldrieve said he’s always amazed how many people come out to help look for people they don’t know, or have no connection to, especially 35 years after the fact.

“We put a message out looking for strangers to come and search for a stranger. It’s incredible the turnout for these missing people. That, I love sharing with the families,” said Oldrieve.

While the OPP are not actively conducting searches for Maas or Hanna, they said both cold cases are still being actively investigated.

A $50,000 reward for information leading to their location is active in both cases. OPP urge people to call 1-800-222-8477 or send a secure web tip if you have information about Maas or Hanna.

To help with the July searches, or future ones, you can contact Nick Oldrieve from Please Bring Me Home at [e-mail].