Former Jefferson City church youth director missing in Kansas City
A former director at a Jefferson City church is missing, according to his family and police in western Missouri.
Chad Rogers, 30, left his Liberty, Mo. home around 8:30 p.m. Monday to go running but never returned.
“It became a couple hours later and we start wondering what to think. We start saying, okay, it’s time,” Greg Rogers, Chad’s father, told affiliate WDAF.
Rogers is married and has a 13-month-old son. He was in the process of moving back to Liberty from Jefferson City. Rogers was the former youth director at First United Methodist Church in Jefferson City.
Family and friends created a Facebook group, “Bring Chad Home,” to share the latest information on the search.
Liberty police told KMBC Rogers is a marathon runner and frequently runs between 3 and 15 miles along several different routes.
A K-9 unit picked up Rogers’ scent around 5 p.m. Tuesday and police asked volunteer searchers to hold off on their search efforts so the dog could work without distraction. Just before 8 p.m.,volunteers were given permission to help in the search.
As of Wednesday afternoon, crews were still in the area, with at least one K-9 unit searching for Rogers, according to the Liberty Police Department.
He was last seen wearing a bright orange visor with ‘Newton Running’ printed on it, black running shorts and red running shoes. He was not wearing a shirt nor did he have a phone or ID on him.
“We’re in a state of shock,” said Jo Ann Immele, Chad’s mother-in-law. “This is not like Chad to just run off. He’s very devoted to my daughter and extremely devoted to his baby.”
Rogers is 5 feet 11 inches, 175 lbs, bald, with tattoos on his upper chest, on both arms and forearms and on both thighs and on his right calf.
If you know anything about Rogers, please call Liberty Police at 816-439-4701.
Rogers’ disappearance has members of his old congregation worried. Fellow church-goers took to social media to express their concerns:
A prayer vigil is being held tonight at First United Methodist Church Wednesday night from 4 to 7pm.
