Hope remains 24 years after Audrey Herron disappeared
Published on:
August 24, 2026
The Freehold mother of three, who would today be 55 years old, was last seen on August 29, 2002, after leaving her job in Jefferson Heights. Photo contributed.
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FREEHOLD―This Saturday, August 29 marks 24 years since Audrey May Herron disappeared.
The Freehold mother of three, who would today be 55 years old, was last seen driving west on State Route 23 in Catskill around 11 p.m. on that rainy Thursday night in 2002. A nurse, Herron had just finished her shift at the former Greene County Long Term Care in Jefferson Heights.
She was reported missing by family members the next morning when her husband, Jeff Herron, said his wife never arrived at their County Route 67 home the night before.
To date, neither Herron nor her black 1994 Jeep Grand Cherokee have ever been found, and State Police believe she is missing "under suspicious circumstances."
Herron’s oldest daughter, Sonsia Elliott, was 10 years old when her mother disappeared.
“I still have hope there will be a break in the case. I will always hope that her or her vehicle are found, or someone comes forward with information,” Elliott said Monday.
State Police have used all available resources to search for clues along the 12-mile stretch of highway between Herron’s job in Jefferson Heights and her home. They have followed thousands of leads across the United States and into Canada. Hundreds of people have been interviewed, bodies of water have been searched, helicopters have scanned the area from above, and psychics were even consulted. The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) was brought in and Herron’s disappearance has made national news. But the most extensive missing persons case in the county’s history still remains a mystery.
“The investigator on her case does stay in regular contact with me and is great about looking into even the smallest of leads,” Elliott said.
In September of 2022, Adventures with Purpose, the world-famous dive team dedicated to closing missing persons cases, joined in the search.
The crew scoured ponds, creeks, the Hudson River, and even the Alcove Reservoir just north in Albany County with specialized underwater sonar equipment. But the extensive four-day search turned up no signs of Herron or her vehicle.
“Growing up without your mom is tough, it’s tougher when you have no idea what happened to her,” Elliott said. “Her disappearance altered mine and my siblings lives forever in every way a life can be altered.”
The investigation into Herron’s disappearance remains active and anyone with information is urged to call State Police at 518-622-8600.
“Almost every single day I wish she were here and I could ask her advice,” Elliott said. “The magnitude of her loss truly cannot be explained with words even 24 years later.”
