Almost 13 years after her daughter disappeared, a Calgary mother is still pleading for answers and hoping someone will come forward with new information.
Sara Georgina Coates was last seen on August 1, 2012, during a walk in Calgary’s Stanley Park with her mother, Dubhe Coates. At the time, Sara was 31 years old and living in her van with her dog and two cats. She had been travelling frequently, and her mother says their last conversation was about helping her settle down.
“The last words I said were, ‘we have to find you a place, you can’t keep living in your van,’” said Dubhe.
In 2013, Sara’s van was discovered near Mînî Thnî (formally Morley), west of Calgary. Some of her belongings were found scattered in a nearby wooded area, but there was no trace of Sara. Since then, Cochrane RCMP have been actively investigating her disappearance, urging anyone with information to come forward.
Dubhe said she initially wasn’t alarmed when she didn’t hear from her daughter right away, noting that it wasn’t unusual for Sara to go months without making contact.
“She rarely used her phone,” she said. “I wasn’t concerned because she’d come back. We had a lot of tragedy and she dealt with it by travelling.”
That changed in October 2012 when her daughter’s insurance and pet licenses started to expire.
“When she didn’t call for the pink card, or I couldn’t reach her, I was worried,” said Dubhe. “But she’s an adult and very independent. Never in my whole life would I have thought something would happen to Sara.”
By December, Dubhe said she had a strong feeling something was wrong.
“I just got a terrible feeling she was dead,” she said. “I went to her bank and saw there hadn’t been any activity in a long time. That’s when I called the police.”
Dubhe believes her daughter is no longer alive but hopes her remains will be found one day.
“Sara was a very nice person, very spiritual,” she said. “Her main loves in life were animals, the environment, human rights, music.”
She praised the Cochrane RCMP for their ongoing efforts and said the people of Mînî Thnî have offered support over the years. But she hopes more people will come forward with what they know.
“Quite a lot of people know when the van got there, what happened. If they could have the courage to speak up, that’s what I’m praying for.”
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Anyone with information about Sara Coates’ disappearance is asked to contact Cochrane RCMP at 403-851-8000 or call Crime Stoppers anonymously at 1-800-222-8477 (TIPS).