Hope

Healing our Painful Emotions

Our loved ones have stepped out of everyday reality into a twilight zone between fate and possibility, being and not being. They have become a missing person. How could we lose someone in our family?

Our sister Shelva vanished in 2006 and our family still attempts to cope and regain our lives. We will always need to know where Shelva is and what happened to her.

According to Project Jason, 2,500 people go missing every day and 850,000 go missing annually, Whatever the cause, no one can capture the horror, frustration and pain that is felt by those who know and love the missing person. The disappearance is often ambiguous, and the precise cause is never established.

In the aftermath of our sisters disappearance, we established Lead Me Home Today, a not for profit organization that is dedicated to provide resources to educate, assist and support families and friends coping with the equivocal disappearance of a loved one. Working with Office of Victims Advocate (OVA) and our state representatives and senators to bring awareness and change.

We know there aer many challenges ahead and knowing you have our support makes a difference. If you have a person missing or want additional information, contact us at 570-942-6068 or use the contact form located here,

3521DFPA - Shelva Jean Rafte

Name: Shelva Jean Rafte

Case Classification: Endangered Missing
Missing Since: May 28, 2006
Location Last Seen: Pittston, Luzerne County, Pennsylvania

Physical Description

Date of Birth: May 24, 1962
Age: 44 years old
Race: White
Gender: Female
Height: 5'3"
Weight: 100-120 lbs.
Hair Color: Blonde, very thick with highlights and cowlicks at her crown and front bang area.
Eye Color: Hazel/Brown
Nickname/Alias: Shelly
Distinguishing Marks/Features: Scar on her abdomen. Ears and navel pierced. Often has acrylic fingernails in a French manicure style. Her toenails would be done in a French manicure style to match her fingernails. She has very thin, light brown eyebrows, and very sparse eyelashes.

Identifiers

Dentals: Available
Fingerprints: Not available
DNA: Available

Clothing & Personal Items

Clothing: Powder blue shirt, denim capri pants with rhinestones on the back pockets, and sneakers or brown leather sandals.
Jewelry: Gold hoop earrings, many different strands of gold necklaces, gold bracelets, and a watch worn on the left wrist.
Additional Personal Items: Pink purse and magnifying reading glasses.

Circumstances of Disappearance

Shelva Jean Rafte, known as Shelly and whose maiden name is Conrad, was last seen by her family at a family graduation party when she left to go home. According to her then boyfriend she was last seen in the area of Market and River Streets just after midnight on May 28, 2006 in Jenkins Township. Also according to her then boyfriend, John Para, she had just left his home after the two had an argument, and started to walk back to her home, which was on Cleveland Street in Pittston. She never arrived at her home. The next day, her car was still parked in the driveway and her IRS tax refund check was still in her mailbox. Despite intensive searches, no clues were found.

Shelva worked in Scott, Pennsylvania at the Scott 60 truck stop. She has four children. She reportedly frequented the areas of Jenkins Township in Luzerne County, Nicholson Borough in Wyoming County, and the city of Harrisburg in Dauphin County.

There is a reward of up to $5,000 for information that would help solve her disappearance being offered by Pennsylvania Crime Stoppers and Shelva's family.

Investigating Agency(s)

Agency Name: Pittston City Police Department
Agency Contact Person: N/A
Agency Phone Number: (570) 654-0513
Agency E-Mail: N/A
Agency Case Number: 1092

NCIC Case Number: Unknown
NamUs Case Number: 1250

Information Source(s)

NamUs