On a spring day, May 10, 1969, in the scenic surroundings of Squamish, British Columbia, seven-year-old Lorie Lynn Lewis was enjoying the outdoors with her siblings. An Indigenous girl with shoulder-length black hair and brown eyes, Lorie was last seen playing near a beach on the Cheekeye River, not far from where it meets the Cheakamus River. She was wearing a simple blue bathing suit at the time she vanished, a detail that paints a poignant picture of a child's innocent play abruptly
interrupted. Her home was only about a hundred yards away from where she was last seen by her siblings.
The moments following Lorie's disappearance were filled with urgency and concern. The Cheekeye River, swollen and swift with the season's runoff, became the immediate focus of the investigation. It is believed that the powerful current of the river may have tragically overcome the young girl. In response to her disappearance, an extensive two-day search was launched, bringing together a hundred people from the community, all hoping to find the missing child. A tracking dog was also part of the intensive effort to locate any trace of Lorie, but the search yielded no signs of her.
The disappearance of Lorie Lynn Lewis has remained an open case with the Squamish RCMP for decades. Despite the comprehensive search efforts and the passage of time, Lorie has never been found, and the case remains unsolved. The prevailing belief held by authorities is that she accidentally drowned in the fast-moving river she was playing near. This presumption, while offering a possible explanation, provides little solace to a family and community left without definitive answers, forever marking a tragic day in the history of Squamish.Last Seen: May 10, 1969
