Destiny Rae says she’s not leaving Thunder Bay, Ont., until she finds her partner, Kelsey Anderson, who was last seen in the northwestern Ontario city nearly two weeks ago.

Anderson was last seen May 9 at Old Navy in the Thunder Centre shopping area and has not been heard from since. His family says it’s unlike him to go without contact, and they’ve become increasingly concerned about his well-being.

Dozens of people filled the room at a news conference held Thursday about Anderson’s disappearance. His family spoke about the mental health challenges he’s been going through, including grieving the loss of his cousin who was struck and killed by a train in the city at the end of April.

“He thought no one cared for him. He was hurting,” Rae said through tears. “He really believed himself, even when I said everyone loved him and cared for him.”

Anderson, who’s turned 36 since being reported missing, grew up in Kasabonika Lake First Nation and is a member of Webequie First Nation, a remote Ojibway community about 550 kilometres north of Thunder Bay. He also has ties to Nibinamik First Nation, and was in Thunder Bay to attend a training program.

“This is a very difficult time for Kelsey’s family and the communities of Webequie, Nibinamik and Kasabonika,” Webequie’s Chief Lorraine Whitehead said.

“In a close-knit First Nation community like ours, when somebody goes missing, the impact is felt by all of us.”

Members of several surrounding First Nations in northwestern Ontario as well as Manitoba have flown to the city to assist with search efforts. Guardian Migizi Security, an Indigenous-led organization that supports First Nations during emergencies, is also helping.

Anderson’s disappearance comes just weeks after 23-year-old Ashlynn Bottle and 25-year-old Nodin Skunk of Mishkeegogamang First Nation were reported missing in Thunder Bay.

The pair were last seen together April 26 at the old Pool 8 grain elevator on the city’s south side. On Friday evening, the Thunder Bay Police Service (TBPS) said they are “no longer the subject of a missing persons investigation.”

Condolences were widely shared on social media by friends and family members. 

“It’s really very troubling actually, that this is becoming such a regular occurrence where family after family is out there week after week searching for a lost loved one,” said Alvin Fiddler, Grand Chief of Nishnawbe Aski Nation (NAN).

NAN, a political-territorial organization that represents 49 First Nations across Treaties 9 and 5, has long been advocating for more support to prevent members from going missing in Thunder Bay.

It’s an issue that’s gone on for decades, as highlighted by the Seven Youth Inquest which examined the deaths of seven First Nations’ youth in the city between 2000 and 2011.   

“I wish that we had a better system of doing these types of searches,” Fiddler said.

“I think at some point very soon, we will ask for a meeting with the city, with the police, with all the appropriate officials, for us to have this discussion about what’s happening here and what we can do as a community to better collaborate.”

‘I feel lost without my nephew’

Anderson is described as a five-foot-nine Indigenous man with a slim build, brown eyes, black hair and a goatee-style beard. He was last seen wearing a black and grey baseball cap, a tan hoodie, black pants, and white and grey sneakers.

His uncle, Johnny Yellowhead, said he went missing for three days last year before contacting his family.

“I feel lost without my nephew,” Yellowhead said. “I want to tell him that he’s loved and I want him to contact one of us.”

When questioned by a member of the crowd about the recent missing persons cases, TBPS missing persons co-ordinator Jeff Saunders said the service “deals with over 800 missing people each year.”

In Anderson’s case, Saunders said police have checked his last cell phone pings and financial transactions, which place him in the Thunder Centre area on May 9. His cell phone hasn’t been used since then, which means it’s either dead or shut off.

“We’re in the process right now of trying to get more video [footage] from the businesses in that area,” Saunders said. “We’re following up interviews with family, friends.”

Meanwhile, searchers have covered a lot of ground, including areas near the Thunder Centre, the Thunder Bay Regional Health Sciences Centre, Algoma Street, the marina and homeless encampments, Jack McKay of Guardian Migizi Security said.

“We ask the public to check their cameras and also check their property — like their garages and all that — and if they do find something, let us know right away,” McKay said.

A Facebook page called “Help Us Find Kelsey Anderson” had more than 300 members at publication time.

The TBPS asks anyone with information about Anderson’s whereabouts to contact police at 807-684-1200 or submit tips anonymously through Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-8477 or www.p3tips.com.