Stoyles was one of 50 volunteers who dedicated their Thanksgiving Monday to the search.
“We all enjoy being members of the team and helping the community,” he said. “This is what we do and what we look forward to doing and helping people. We take the time away from our own families to help other families in need.”
This particular search was a little different for most searchers since it took place along the side of a busy highway.
“All of our members are dressed in high visibility clothing and we try to stay as far away from the road as possible. We don’t want to get too close,” said Stoyles. “At times, we do use RCMP with their lights on and their cars so the traffic does slow down at the times when we are close to the road.”
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Mackenzie’s mother, Kelly Eagles says her daughter has taken off in the past — but not for this long.
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“She does have a long history of running, or taking off or being late for curfew or staying out for a couple days,” said Eagles. “The big thing is that in those situations, we’ve always known after about 24 hours approximately where she is or we would hear from friends. This time around, it’s a little different. No one knows where she is.”
Police say Mackenzie’s bike and her helmet were located by a family member near the airport along Highway 102 last Sunday.
Eagles says her daughter moved from Halifax to the Enfield area in April to live with her grandfather.
“She left during the middle of the night,” she said. “It really kind of came out of nowhere. They were talking about a new school, preparing for a camping trip, just everyday fun stuff.”
Eagles says so far, there has been no concrete information about where her daughter is.
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“There’s been two possible sightings in Dartmouth that seem to connect with her past behaviours but there’s been other leads in other areas of the province as well that the RCMP are looking into,” she told Global News.
Police say they are concerned for Mackenzie’s well-being.
“It’s because of her age and the fact that it’s been a couple weeks now since anyone has heard from her or seen her,” said Const. Wayne Cathcart of the RCMP.
Police say they have reason to believe Mackenzie is in the Halifax-Dartmouth area and are encouraging the teen — or anyone who may have information on her whereabouts — to contact them.
“The more information we have and the leads we have, the better chance we have of finding her and making sure she’s OK,” said Cathcart. “Drop someone a line to a family member or whatever to say, ‘Hey, I’m OK,’ because that’s the biggest words family members want to hear — because right now, the unknown for them is probably what’s eating away at them.”
Police and family members are encouraging Mackenzie to reach out so they can ensure she is alright.
Eagles wants her daughter to know she is not in any trouble for taking off.
“That’s always something that I think Mackenzie is worried about is how people will react but she’s not in any trouble. Mackenzie’s not in any trouble at all. It’s just we want to make sure that she’s safe,” she said.
Mackenzie is described as a white female, five-feet tall and 150 pounds. She has dark blond/light brown hair and blue/green eyes.
When she was last seen, Mackenzie was wearing a navy blue sweater and was carrying a dark-coloured backpack with yellow writing on it.
Police are asking anyone who might know of Mackenzie’s whereabouts to contact the East Hants District RCMP at 902-883-7077. Anonymous tips can be sent to Crime Stoppers.
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