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Missing woman's family holds out hope

Ashley Simpson went missing from the Salmon River area April 27.
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It has been two months since Ashley Simpson went missing.

The parents of Ashley Simpson have posted a mantra on social media: “And sometimes, against all odds, against all logic, we still hope.”

John and Cindy Simpson have still heard nothing about the whereabouts of their daughter, who went missing from the Salmon River area April 27.

The RCMP are not ruling out foul play and have brought in members of the major crimes unit to work on the case. Police have released no information about their findings.

A search was conducted in the area, especially focused on the Yankee Flats property where Simpson had been living in a travel trailer.

Brent Cox, who owns the property, says Simpson had indicated she wanted to go back to Ontario to work with her father, but did not have the financial means to get there.

Simpson has not been seen or heard from since.

The Simpsons, who live in St. Catharines, Ont., say the most difficult part about the situation is waiting and wondering. Ashley was an avid user of social media and to have that stop is completely out of character for their 32-year-old daughter.

Ashley was planning to return to Ontario to work with her father as a cook, but there has been no word from her, and no sign of her on any video surveillance or any use of bank cards.

The Simpsons are pleased that the RCMP is now providing them with weekly updates

“Even if they can’t tell us much, as long as we know there are giving this case their all, that helps,” says Cindy.

The most recent development is the discovery of a truck used to tow the travel trailer from northern B.C. to the property on Yankee Flats. The property is owned by a friend of the couple who said they could stay there temporarily. This truck was no longer on the Yankee Flats property when the initial police search was conducted.

“The police told us it was found in the bush somewhere and that their forensic team was going over it,” says Cindy. “That’s all we know.”

In the meantime, the family is making it their mission to raise awareness of the issue of missing women in Canada.

At the beginning of June, Ashley’s parents, members of her extended family and friends participated in the Gillian’s Place Walk for Women, which provides shelter and services for abused women and their children in the Niagara region.

“They dedicated the walk to Ashley, and Team Ashley raised more than $1,000, so that was something positive,” says John.