Three weeks after disappearing from her family home in Kimberling City, a Stone County woman is still missing. Haven Shelton, who lives with her parents under a conservatorship, has not been seen since the evening of June 10.
The 19-year-old has been missing since Tuesday, June 11 from her home in Kimberling Airways, a neighborhood along Table Rock Lake. After working on several tips in Taney County west of Branson early in the case, the Stone County Sheriff's Department said Monday they were no longer receiving any solid leads. Those who think they see Haven Shelton should still contact the Stone County Sheriff's Department.
"We kind of feel at this point that she may not be in Stone or Taney County," said Jennifer Shelton, Haven Shelton's mother.
Haven Shelton stands five feet tall and weighs 110 pounds, with shoulder-length brown hair and brown eyes. According to her mother, Haven Shelton has a significant mental illness and medical condition requiring medication twice daily.
"She's not 19 mentally. She's more like probably a 13-year-old girl," said Jennifer Shelton. "She's very vulnerable to people. She's just kind of a childlike sort of person. We do have guardianship and conservatorship of her for that."
Jennifer Shelton said her daughter might have had a small amount of cash, but left the home without her cell phone, glasses, medication, ID, and debit card. It is thought that Haven Shelton was wearing a dark-colored sweatshirt, dark jeans, black Converse sneakers, and a black and gray Adidas backpack.
"She takes medication twice a day for multiple psychiatric disorders and she takes medication twice a day for seizure disorder," said Jennifer Shelton. "So the fact that she hasn't had them for three weeks is concerning. But the fact that she stopped those medications very suddenly is also very concerning."
Usually, Haven Shelton makes her bed in the morning. But on the morning of June 11, Jennifer Shelton found the bed had not been made. That set off alarm bells. She then remembered her husband found the front door slightly ajar that morning.
"Which, you know, made us realize she left in the middle of the night," Jennifer Shelton said.
She added that Haven Shelton has a history of trying to run away, going back to her preschool years. Alarm systems and security cameras have always been in place to prevent her from running away. But Jennifer Shelton said the batteries died the night of June 10, so they weren't alerted when the door opened.
"She came to live with us when she was 6 and we adopted her when she was 7, and since she's lived with us, she's never successfully run away," she said.
Jennifer Shelton has also organized the "Bring Haven Home" Facebook page, which has garnered nearly 2,000 followers. The page shares daily updates, news stories, and urges the public to keep an eye out for Haven Shelton. Most recently, Jennifer Shelton said new information indicates Haven Shelton may have been trying to hitchhike, possibly to Springfield.
"I think, probably, she was trying to hitchhike," Jennifer Shelton said.
Right now, Haven Shelton's parents want her to know that they love her. They want her to come home, but they also want Haven Shelton to know that she is not in trouble.
"We think that if she sees that the police are looking for her, she's going to assume she's in trouble. So we want her to know that she's not in trouble. She just needs to call 911 or call us," Jennifer Shelton said. "We just want to know that she's safe and to talk to her."
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