Heidi Search Center

Description

In Aug. 1990, 11 year old Heidi Seeman was abducted from her neighborhood in Northeast San Antonio, Texas. A search for her was initiated by her father. The search grew rapidly from a small group of family and neighbors, to thousands of people in the community. For 3 weeks over 8,000 people per day searched 1,200 square miles in and around the San Antonio area for Heidi. In addition to the search, the San Antonio Mayor, Howard Peak, proclaimed September 1, 1992 "Find Heidi Day". On this day, citizens were asked to provide an hour of their time to scour their neighborhoods. Police estimated that 300,000 residents participated in the effort. Within the same month, Erica Botello was abducted near her home in Southwest San Antonio. Volunteers, using the knowledge they gained during Heidi’s search, responded immediately by quickly setting up a command post and mounting a full scale search for Erica. Searches ended tragically when both girls were found deceased. For over 23 years, Heidi Search Center has continued to grow and serve San Antonio and surrounding areas.