Hannah Upp - Bryn Mawr Graduate Disappears In New York
Woman, 23, Went Missing Days Before Scheduled To Return To Teaching Job
NEW YORK -- A 23-year-old New York City schoolteacher has gone missing just days before classes began, police said.
Family and friends of Hannah Upp are trying to determine the whereabouts of the Portland, Ore. native who graduated from Bryn Mawr College. Upp was last seen about 2:30 p.m. Aug. 29 as she left her apartment in the Hamilton Heights neighborhood, police said.
Portland friend Ann Huntwork said the notion that Upp would "walk off" right before school started doesn't sound like something she would do.
"(It) doesn't sound like she left of her own free will," Huntwork said.
Upp's roommates found the woman's keys, phone, ATM card, subway MetroCard, wallet and passport in her room. Her friends also have created a page on Facebook.com where people that know Upp can post any information they may have about the missing woman's whereabouts.
Upp was teaching at the Thurgood Marshall Academy.
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resignedPosted:
Fri Sep 05, 2008 11:21 pm
Rewards offered for info on missing NYC teacher
9/5/2008, 8:34 p.m. EDT
The Associated Press
NEW YORK (AP) — Authorities and a teachers' union are offering rewards for help finding a 23-year-old upper Manhattan school teacher who disappeared just days before classes began.
The United Federation of Teachers announced a $10,000 reward Friday, adding to a $2,000 reward offered by the New York Police Department's Crime Stoppers unit. The union also sent counselors to the Thurgood Marshall Academy in East Harlem, where Hannah Upp was supposed to have started her second year of teaching Tuesday.
Police say Upp was last seen about 2:30 p.m. Aug. 29 as she left her apartment in the Hamilton Heights neighborhood. Upp's roommates later found her keys, phone, ATM card, MetroCard, wallet and passport in her room.
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resignedPosted:
Fri Sep 05, 2008 11:23 pm
Off the Record: Looking Out for our Own
By Andrea Milne
As I hope the entire bi-college community has been made aware by now, Hannah Emily Upp, a 23 year old graduate of Bryn Mawr’s class of 2007, has been missing since Friday, August 29, from her residence in the vicinity of Hamilton Terrace, Harlem. I am in the process of writing a detailed report on the situation to run in the upcoming first issue of the paper, but my conscience could not allow me to wait any longer to put something out on the subject. This post was written in part through a blurb written by Hannah’s brother, which you can find on the Facebook site "We’re Not Giving Upp (on Hannah)."
After graduating from BMC with a double major in Spanish and Comparative Literature, Hannah began work as a New York City Public School teacher. She teaches middle school Spanish at Thurgood Marshall Academy for Learning and Social Change, at W. 135th and 7th Ave. Hannah is a New York City Teaching Fellow, working on her Master’s degree at Pace University and teaching full time. She completed her first year of teaching 2007-08, and was about to start her second year of teaching when she went missing.
Anyone with any information about Hannah’s whereabouts is asked to contact Detective Perez, 30th Precinct Detective Squad, at 212-690-8842, or 212-690-8843.
Having been lucky enough to live in the same dorm as Hannah during her senior year (and my sophomore year) of College, I can say without hesitation that Hannah has the radiant personality and unwavering enthusiasm for life that we all strive for, and the strength of both will and conviction that makes Bryn Mawr women so special. Please do everything you can to help us find this beautiful woman. We all miss her very much.
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resignedPosted:
Fri Sep 05, 2008 11:26 pm
Sep 5, 2008 8:30 pm US/Eastern
Family, Friends Join Search For Missing Teacher
NEW YORK (CBS) ― Mystery surrounds the disappearance of a young school teacher who has been missing for one week.
Hannah Upp's identification, credit cards and money were all left behind. Now, her family and a massive army of friends are pulling together to search in neighborhoods and on-line.
The 23-year-old teacher at Thurgood Marshall Academy was last seen at her Hamilton Terrace apartment by a friend lone week ago.
"She was well travelled and in to art and dance, and everything about her she would bring in to the classroom with such passion," Angela Hernandez said. "That is why we are baffled."
Her mother, Barbara Bellus calls her disappearance "mystifying."
She said Hannah is single, with lots of friends, lots of joy and was excited about the new school year. The desperate mom hopes her daughter somehow hears her plea:
"Hannah come home. We love you so much. You can't imagine the outpouring and love and friends and family and grace and peace. We love you so, so much. Whatever will bring you home...we are grateful for," Bellus said.
The evening of the disappearance, her roomates came home to find her purse, wallet, cell phone, ID, ATM, and subway cards, but no Upp.
Neighbors tell CBS 2 HD there are concerns about safety in Upp's building - doors are propped open, there are no security cameras in the hallway, except for a tiny one connected to intercom that doesn't record the comings and goings.
Friends are searching neighborhoods, putting up flyers and calling hospitals. A page went up on Facebook called 'We're Not Giving Upp on Hannah,' which quickly grew to have more than a thousand members.
"I hope and I believe we are going to find her," Upp's friend Hannah Wood said.
Wood feels someone must know something. Just email or call police to solve this puzzle and end the pain of not knowing.
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resignedPosted:
Fri Sep 05, 2008 11:31 pm
Hannah Upp Facebook Group
Type: Common Interest - Beliefs & Causes
Description: You may already know that Hannah Upp has been missing from her home in NYC since Friday, 8/29.
Hopefully this group will serve as a forum for people to share anything they might know about Hannah's plans or her current whereabouts.
Here is a condensed, updated version of the general email that went out - it was to Bryn Mawr people, but we know Hannah was loved by many, many people far beyond the boundaries of Bryn Mawr township, so please forgive its geocentricity:
"Hi
I don't know if you have seen any of the desperate AIM/Facebook/gchat messages, so I thought I would fill you in re: what's happening with Hannah Upp.
Though you perhaps may not have been in touch with her recently, I know all of you fortunate enough to have crossed paths with her care a great deal for Hannah and will be very concerned to hear that she is missing. Even if you didn't know Hannah that well personally, she is a fellow Mawrter - our Sister - and so please read this to see if you can help.
The last time anyone saw her was around 2pm on the afternoon of Friday, August 29th. According to her roommates, Manny and Sam, she had been planning to go away for the weekend but intended to return on Saturday, perhaps Sunday at the latest. When they had neither seen nor heard from Hannah on Sunday afternoon, they began calling her but each time it went straight to voicemail.
By Monday evening they were getting frantic and so they went into her room, where they discovered her keys, her phone, and her handbag containing her wallet. Her ATM card, her subway card, and her ID (right now just her passport) were all in there. They began calling those of us they recognized from her phone contacts, but no-one knew where she was - apparently people had been trying to get in touch with her since Thursday. As it became clear that no-one knew where she was, Manny and I talked and, with support from others, decided that the police should become involved.
The police said they couldn't report her yet as missing, but they came to the building anyway and did a search. When she didn't show up for work on Tuesday (her first day of teaching), and it became apparent that she had not gone on Friday either, the police decided it was time to file a Missing Persons Report. Hannah's mum arrived on Tuesday and Piyali went with her to the precinct, and I met up with them and the detective at Hannah's apartment on Tuesday afternoon. They searched her room - then, and since then - and we have all been interviewed.
Everyone is desperately hoping that Hannah just got overwhelmed and took a few days off to escape, but the fact that all her stuff was found in the apartment is a mystery . Piyali and I combed the neighborhood park, and today Hannah's colleagues searched that park again and also a nearby park - both places where she liked to go running. The police have also been searching, and we have all been flyer-ing both near and far like madwomen.
Hopefully Hannah is out there somewhere - she HAS to be: in the event that any of you have talked to her recently, or heard anything about her plans, please let us know so we can get it to the police.
Hannah's mum also asked us to reach out to as many people as possible who might have, however tenuous, a connection with Hannah that could lead to something, so please talk to anybody - BMC or Haverford alums - that you think would be helpful.
On a personal level this has been a real wake-up call to the harsh realities of life outside Athena's embrace. Being a beautiful human being is perhaps not always enough to protect us. Please, please, just watch out for yourselves, and take a moment (or many) to wish for Hannah's safe return."
****************
I go where I love...
I go to the things I love without thought of duty or pity.
- H. D.
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resignedPosted:
Sat Sep 06, 2008 5:58 am
abc7-video
Click your heels together...
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gwenPosted:
Sat Sep 06, 2008 12:33 pm
$10G Reward Offered for Help Finding Missing New York City Teacher
Saturday, September 06, 2008
NEW YORK — Authorities and a teachers' union are offering rewards for help finding a 23-year-old upper Manhattan school teacher who disappeared just days before classes began.
The United Federation of Teachers announced a $10,000 reward Friday, adding to a $2,000 reward offered by the New York Police Department's Crime Stoppers unit.
The union also sent counselors to the Thurgood Marshall Academy in East Harlem, where Hannah Upp was supposed to have started her second year of teaching Tuesday.
Police say Upp was last seen about 2:30 p.m. Aug. 29 as she left her apartment in the Hamilton Heights neighborhood.
Upp's roommates later found her keys, phone, ATM card, MetroCard, wallet and passport in her room.
#
Dear Reader,
I am Hannah's cousin from Dodge City, KS. Just want to thank you with all my heart for posting her picture and this cry for help on your site. We have all (you and I) experienced crisis in our lives... some more than others for sure... but you can imagine what our family and friends are going through at this time. In crisis all the "junk" is stripped away... and we are only left with our beliefs and dreams that are struggling to keep alive. Through your prayers and support you are helping us keep faith of seeing Hannah once again safe and sound. Through your prayers and support we will continue to dream the best for her and our familly. - Corey
By COREYDANIEL on 09/04/2008 at 4:31pm
--------------------
#
Dearest Hannah,
All of your professors here at Bryn Mawr want you safe and sound.
Lázaro Lima
By LazLima1 on 09/05/2008 at 5:23pm
----------------------
#
It has been a long time since i have seen Hannah. We were the best of friends in middle school and when i heard this on the news it broke my heart. All my thoughts and prayers for the family and her safe return home.
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resignedPosted:
Sat Sep 06, 2008 5:18 pm
More About Missing NYC Teacher Hannah Upp
Posted at 12:13 PM Sep 05, 2008
On the phone, Arielle Schechter's youthful voice sounds a little frayed. Her worry for her friend Hannah Emily Upp is palpable.
hannahupp2.jpgHannah, age 23, has been missing since August 29, 2008. When she didn't come to work to begin her second year of teaching Spanish at Thurgood Marshall Academy for Learning and Social Change in Harlem, it was clear that something was wrong.
Arielle told me that Hannah's friends are simply doing everything they can think of to get the word out about Hannah's disappearance. That was why she joined friends Hannah Wood, Amy Scott and Piyali Bhattacharya in maintaining the Facebook group they titled "We're Not Giving Upp (on Hannah)."
"We need to just get as much information out there as we can and hope that the right person sees her," Arielle said. They're doing pretty well -- at last count, the Facebook group had 1,282 members.
Arielle said that everyone is worried. Some are scared. But, she said, "we don't know," so they "try to not speculate."
Hannah was a "freegan", but Arielle explained that being a freegan wasn't really that big a part of Hannah's lifestyle. It was social, for Hannah, something fun and unusual to do. It didn't have to be about finding free food -- Hannah might find a perfectly nice picture frame out by a Dumpster and take it home.
Hannah's vanishing is a true conundrum for those who know her. Arielle, who has known Hannah for "about 3 years," says that nothing fits. And many of the usual issues that pop up when a person goes missing weren't present in Hannah's life. As far as Arielle Schechter knows, Hannah has never had any major mental health issues. Hannah Upp didn't have a significant other, or any known problems with an ex, either.
Hannah's job teaching middle schoolers Spanish was part of New York City's teaching fellowship program. Hannah was taking classes towards her master's at night and, like other teaching fellows, working at an underserved school during the day. Arielle said she thought that Hannah was good at what she did -- "very creative."
Hannah's first year teaching at Thurgood Marshall wasn't a picnic, but as far as Arielle knew, that was about par for the course for any first year teacher.
People have been posting flyers everywhere in Hannah's neighborhood, and Arielle said that scent dogs will try to find some trace of Hannah along routes she was known to run.
On the Web, friends are sending out blind e-mails, to publicists, people working with publishing houses or at newspapers, anyone who can get the word out.
It's all they can think of to do, right now. Get the word out, and not speculate too much.
Hannah Emily Upp is 5'5" and weighs about 130 lbs. She has long, dark hair and hazel-green eyes. She has a lot of friends who want her to come home safe. Again, if you know anything about her disappearance, call Detective Perez at the 30th Precinct Detective Squad at 212-690-8842, or 212-690-8843, or call (800) 577-TIPS.
Freegans are people who employ alternative strategies for living based on limited participation in the conventional economy and minimal consumption of resources. Freegans embrace community, generosity, social concern, freedom, cooperation, and sharing in opposition to a society based on materialism, moral apathy, competition, conformity, and greed.
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IsanahPosted:
Sat Sep 06, 2008 9:08 pm
You learn something new everyday. I have never heard of a freegan!
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paxPosted:
Sat Sep 06, 2008 10:39 pm
Isanah wrote:
You learn something new everyday. I have never heard of a freegan!
Me neither Isanah.
I hope someone finds Hannah Upp.
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resignedPosted:
Sat Sep 06, 2008 11:27 pm
Associated Press Report
Click your heels together...
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resignedPosted:
Sat Sep 06, 2008 11:34 pm
More than a week after teacher went missing, her mother begs for clues BY RICH SCHAPIRO, CARRIE MELAGO and ETHAN ROUEN
DAILY NEWS STAFF WRITERS
Saturday, September 6th 2008, 12:49 AM
Hannah Upp
The mother of a Manhattan public school teacher who disappeared more than a week ago made a desperate plea Friday for help finding her daughter.
"The only reason I continue to talk publicly is just so there might be some connection that someone will have seen her, have some clue, some word that we haven't thought of, or the police haven't thought of," said the Rev. Barbara Bellus, 59, the mother of Hannah Upp.
Upp, 23, has been missing since Aug. 29 - just before the start of the school year.
"She's never taken off in this way at all before. I cannot imagine what has happened," Bellus said.
"It's beyond anything I can comprehend or guess. It's terrible. Your imagination runs wild in all different directions."
Upp was last seen at her Hamilton Heights apartment, fresh from the shower as she got ready for a day at nearby Thurgood Marshall Academy.
Her friends said they do not think Upp fled, especially because her wallet, MetroCard, clothes and cell phone were left in the apartment.
There were some signs, however, that the 2007 graduate of Pennsylvania's Bryn Mawr College was struggling in her new life.
One source said Upp - an NYC Teaching Fellow who was about to get her own classroom - skipped work the day before she disappeared.
Instead of excitedly prepping her classroom for a new academic year, Upp went to a movie by herself in Times Square on Aug. 28 and withdrew $40 from a nearby ATM, the source said.
The principal of Thurgood Marshall declined to comment, and education sources said Upp was at school that day.
The United Federation of Teachers offered a $10,000 reward for information leading to Upp's return.
Upp recently posted an article about the problems of the New York City public schools on her blog, but friends said she loved teaching Spanish to middle school students.
"To my knowledge, she may have been more frustrated than unhappy," said college friend Hannah Wood, 22. "I think that she found it hard, but she really enjoyed what she was doing. I think she really felt that she was making some sort of difference."
Cops said there is no evidence of foul play. They have checked every apartment in the building where she lives, as well as the roof, basement, backyard and area parks.
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resignedPosted:
Sat Sep 06, 2008 11:41 pm
Possible New Development in Hannah Upp Disappearance
Posted at 12:01 AM Sep 07, 2008
Earlier tonight, Arielle Schechter sent an interesting e-mail out to members of the Facebook group devoted to finding missing NYC middle school teacher Hannah Emily Upp. Someone claims they've seen Hannah since she vanished on August 29, 2008. Arielle's e-mail:
Quote:
I just received a call from a man who says he was with Hannah on Monday. He said that he met her in Green Point at about 5:00am on Monday, and they went to Coney Island together, and he left her there at about 9:00pm. He said that her hair is shorter than in her picture. The police are investigating his claim.
- Arielle
The New York Daily News reported Friday that Hannah may have been having more trouble adjusting to her life as a grad student and teacher than anyone knew. From the paper: "One source said Upp - an NYC Teaching Fellow who was about to get her own classroom - skipped work the day before she disappeared."
The same source stated that while other teachers were prepping their classrooms on August 28 in anticipation of the first day of school, Hannah withdrew forty bucks from an ATM and took herself to a movie at a theater in Times Square.
However, the Daily News went on to say that "education sources" told them Hannah did go to school that day. The same article quoted Hannah Wood, one of the admins of the Facebook group, saying that Hannah Upp was "more frustrated than unhappy."
That statement is similar to some things Arielle Schechter said in our conversation yesterday. Hannah's first year of school wasn't all that different from the first year of teaching for many educators; it's frequently a trial by fire.
I hope the lead alluded to in Arielle's e-mail is real, but you cover enough of these cases, it's hard to scoot your cynicism aside. High-profile stories frequently invite the delusional or attention-starved. Still -- it's better to hope than not.
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resignedPosted:
Sat Sep 06, 2008 11:55 pm
Hannah Upp graduated from Bryn Mawr in 2007. Following graduation she moved to New York, where she secured her job at Thurgood Marshall and began doing volunteer work for AIDS organizations. The Daily News reported that she had also begun working on a master's in education at Pace University.
Hannah had wide-ranging, unusual interests. An article published in the Daily News on July 19, 2008 featured a photo of Hannah with a couple of friends holding bags of bagels. According to the piece, Hannah and her friends were "freegans."
Freegans are a subculture of people, usually vegans, who only eat food that is free. Freegans find what they need by scavenging on the street; the practice is called Dumpster diving. To be a freegan is to reject capitalist values and the wastefulness of society at large. It's an act of defiance, a turning away from crass, consumer culture. Since May 8 this year, Hannah Upp had even been a member of a Meetup group for people interested in "NYC Dumpster Diving."
While a member of the Bryn Mawr and Haverford Chamber Singers, Hannah wrote about a choir trip to Ghana for Bryn Mawr Now. Her article revealed a great deal of insight and a compelling way with words.
Hannah wrote:
Quote:
Returning to Bryn Mawr also meant that I was faced with the challenge of explaining how I spent my winter break, and I have surprised myself with my descriptions of the trip. Instead of the details that would excite a thrill-seeking traveler [...] I find myself describing the emotion I felt while we sang a spiritual at the banks of the river where slaves were bathed for the last time before being sent off on the Middle Passage. I recall the power of the hospitality of the family that welcomed me into their home, where I would share a small bed with three others in what turned into a very cozy night. I refer to the instant connection developed with the members of other choirs when we were able to engage through a song that we had specifically learned to sing together. As corny as it sounds, music did become the instant bridge. Even though I had never met this person singing next to me and any objective comparison of our lives would indicate a complete lack of common ground, we were able to interact and share something that needs no explanation...
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resignedPosted:
Sun Sep 07, 2008 9:03 pm
Quote:
A major search effort by the friends of Hannah Emily Upp has been underway for the last few days. Up is a second year Spanish teacher at Thurgood Marshall Academy who lives in Harlem. She was last seen on Friday afternoon, August 29th at around 2:30PM by a friend in her apartment as she was leaving.
Hannah has two roommates, Samantha Gallardo and fellow teacher Manny Ramirez got worried and hadn't heard from her in two days. After having looked in Hannah's bedroom and noticing that her purse, cell phone and ATM card were still there they contacted the police. She left her apartment in Manhattan's Hamilton Heights Friday afternoon the 29th. I am curious as to whether she took her stuff with her on Friday afternoon and returned before disappearing or if she left it at home on Friday. It seems as if she left the apartment on her own volition on Friday afternoon that she would have at least taken her phone and ATM card and possibly her wallet as well. Unless I'm going out in the yard to work I always carry my ID and phone and usually have it with me even working around the house. I haven't seen anyone else ask this question yet but it strikes a strange note with me.
Some of the Portland, Oregon native's friends say that it was extremely unlikely that she would disappear under her own free will. Law Enforcement doesn't currently have any leads but of course they fear the worst.
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resignedPosted:
Mon Sep 08, 2008 1:14 am
Amy Scott (Bryn Mawr) wrote at 8:22am
To clarify: she was in Times Square the day before her disappearance, Thursday. She made a withdrawal and saw a movie (presumably alone). She went back to her apartment, spent the night, and was in her apartment on Friday when she was seen last. There is a live feed security camera at the front of the building through the intercom - it allows you to see who is standing at the door, but it does not record.
Melanie Bailey (London) wrote at 7:27am
was this before or after she went to the cinema on her own? Is there no security in the block she lives in or the street? why cant they track her from atm she used in times square there must be cctv.
Caitlin wrote at 7:10am
sorry - it was a roommate's friend
Caitlin wrote at 7:07am
She was reportedly last seen by one of her roommates wrapped in a towel either walking from their bathroom to her bedroom or the other way around.
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resignedPosted:
Mon Sep 08, 2008 6:27 pm
Friends of Missing School Teacher Suspect Foul Play
Monday, September 08, 2008
New York Teacher Hannah Upp disappeared days before classes were to begin.
NEW YORK — Friends of missing Manhattan school teacher Hannah Upp say it is unlikely she ran away or left the area willingly.
Upp's friends and roommate told FOX News on Sunday that the 23-year-old teacher left her personal belongings behind in the her apartment — including her purse, wallet, and cell phone — and did not indicate that she planned to leave town.
They said Upp was excited to begin her second year of teaching at at Thurgood Marshall Academey in East Harlem, N.Y.
Authorities and a teachers' union are offering rewards for help finding Upp who disappeared just days before classes began.
The United Federation of Teachers announced a $10,000 reward Friday, adding to a $2,000 reward offered by the New York Police Department's Crime Stoppers unit.
Police say Upp was last seen about 2:30 p.m. Aug. 29 as she left her apartment in the Hamilton Heights neighborhood.
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resignedPosted:
Mon Sep 08, 2008 11:02 pm
‘Missing’ Teacher Reportedly Spotted At Apple Store
By Jonathan Dienst
POSTED: 7:12 pm EDT September 8, 2008
NEW YORK -- A 23-year-old Harlem teacher who vanished days before the new school year began was reportedly spotted checking her e-mail at a Midtown computer store today, police sources said.
The sources said the sighting of Hannah Upp, missing since Friday, Aug. 29, still needs to be confirmed and detectives are looking to see if she had been picked up on surveillance cameras at the Apple store on Fifth Avenue Monday and also on Friday.
Police are also checking computer records to see if Upp, a New York City Teaching Fellow, had accessed her e-mail on those days.
Upp taught Spanish last semester at the Thurgood Marshall Academy and was expected to return this fall when she disappeared from her Hamilton Heights apartment, leaving behind her keys, cell phone, wallet, passport and ATM card, police said.
Police sources doubted that she was the victim of foul play and noted that she had also dropped out of sight briefly last semester and may have been dissatisfied with her job.
A Bryn Mawr graduate, the Oregon native moved to Manhattan last year and had been enrolled in graduate courses at Pace University, where missing posters now dot the surrounding streets.
Her friends and family have also started a massive search effort on the Internet with more than 2,000 people signed up on Facebook for "We're Not Giving Upp (on Hannah.)"
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resignedPosted:
Tue Sep 09, 2008 7:43 am
Straight From “Hannah HQ”: An Interview with Hannah Wood ‘07
By Andrea Milne
It was stated in a WNBC4 report that, “A police source said detectives don’t suspect foul play but want to find Upp. Police took her computer and other items to try to determine if she left on her own or if a crime was committed." Why is there so much variation in reports regarding the nature of Upp’s disappearance?
A lot of reports don’t agree with each other. I can tell you that personally, we find it hard to believe that Hannah would have left without all her things; even if she had for some reason gone away, it’s inconceivable that she would have not contacted at least one of us by now. Hannah is one of the most beautiful, kind, considerate people I have ever met, and she would realize how worried we would all be and she would never put us, especially her family, through this. The police have said that there are, however, a lot of Missing Persons cases that do not end up attributed to "foul play," and that in the absence of any evidence they are still not ruling out the possibility - however remote - that she left of her own volition. Our biggest concern is that, while she may have left autonomously, how long can she survive out there with nothing?
That same WNBC4 report also suggested that Hannah "may have been unhappy in her job." To what extent - if at all - can you confirm this?
I can’t speak for Hannah, but I really don’t think she was unhappy in any significant sense. At times, I think she finds the job frustrating - with budget cuts and a lack of fundamental resources (including official curricula), NYC teachers, especially in traditionally underprivileged areas like that where Hannah teaches, are working against some arduous challenges. But she wants to make a difference, she wants to help, she loves Spanish and helping her kids to learn it. At the end of last year, her whole class came together to paint a Diego Rivera-inspired mural. And her kids call her Señora Arriba.
What more could Bryn Mawr (both on an institutional level and on an individual student level) be doing to help in the search for Hannah?
I think the messages of support are vitally important - they have been a great comfort to us, especially to her mother and brother, and the rest of the family. At this point, we as her friends have to at least make an attempt at resuming our normal lives - we have jobs and other obligations to return to - but we need to make sure that she is not eclipsed by other concerns.
Do you have anything you’d like to say to the bi-college community?
From the bottom of all our hearts, thank you so much for your support. This overwhelming outpouring of concern and offers of help are vitally important positives that we can reach for from the depths of this absolutely horrendous situation. Students, faculty, and alums who knew Hannah (and even current students who don’t know her) have all bonded together to help, because that’s the Bryn Mawr way, and I hope people realize that and understand that’s what makes Bryn Mawr truly, truly special. It reminds me of a Joan Baez song, based of course on John Donne’s poem:
"No (wo)man is an island,
No (wo)man stands alone…
We need one another,
So I will defend,
Each (wo)man as my [sister],
Each (wo)man as my friend.
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resignedPosted:
Tue Sep 09, 2008 7:46 am
Opinion Woman's inspiring life provides more than one lesson
Kathy Crawford
September 9, 2008
It saddened me when I heard about Hannah Upp's disappearance, then to read the Statesman Journal's Sept. 5 article titled "Missing Salem native in New York described as responsible." She is so much more.
Advertisement
Hannah and my daughter Amber were the best of friends all through middle school and high school, and beyond. Hannah is like one of my own children.
I remember many late nights when the girls were studying, working on a school project, making up a song to help them learn body parts and names of bones for an anatomy test, baking and frosting hundreds of cookies for their friends, making May baskets or making "break a leg" gifts for students working with them in school musicals. These two girls worked together so much, they were often referred to as "Hanber."
There is a group of six girls, including Hannah, Amber, Lindsey, Jennie, Camas and Kate, who were inseparable all through high school. The six of them had many overnights when they did homework, played games, talked about boys, giggled and planned for their SnoBall and other outings. In a time when many teenagers are experimenting with drugs and alcohol, these girls didn't need those things to have fun. The fun was within them.
When I think of those six girls, some words that come to my mind are loving, intelligent, dedicated, determined, focused, respectful and, yes, responsible. All six of these young women are humans of the highest caliber. In fact, it wouldn't surprise me a bit if one of these girls ended up in the White House one day.
Although all six girls went their separate ways after graduation, they continued to be the best of friends. When they get together, it's like they've never been apart.
Hannah was in Salem at the end of June for a friend's wedding, and I was fortunate enough to see her briefly. The next day, the girls spent time at the coast, catching up and enjoying each other's company.
When Hannah left Salem, she was on her way to India to spend two months there before she returned to teaching. She loved her teaching job and was looking forward to returning to work.
Hannah loves others, she loves life, and she loves God.
When someone you love is in trouble, you feel helpless. But there are a few things we can all do. First, we can pray. Only God knows what is ahead for Hannah. Secondly, we can all do the best we can to take care of ourselves and each other.
We should always be aware of our surroundings. We don't need to be afraid, just aware. And we don't need to trust everyone. We should always let someone know where we are, no matter how old or how responsible we are. It's a matter of safety and respect.
Kathy Crawford is a licensed clinical social worker with the Salem-Keizer School District. She can be contacted at kathycrawford@juno.com.
Joined: 14 Aug 2006
Posts: 27213
Location: "Onboard" pathenry's desk
resignedPosted:
Tue Sep 09, 2008 7:49 am
Click your heels together...
Joined: 14 Aug 2006
Posts: 27213
Location: "Onboard" pathenry's desk
resignedPosted:
Tue Sep 09, 2008 12:57 pm
FACEBOOK AIDS HUNT FOR TEACHER, 23
BY Simone Weichselbaum
COLLEGE PALS of missing Manhattan teacher Hannah Upp are using Facebook to expand the search for the Bryn Mawr grad.
More than 2,400 Facebook members have joined the online group We're Not Giving Upp (on Hannah).
Upp, 23, vanished Aug. 29. She was last seen at her Hamilton Heights apartment preparing to go to work as a NYC Teaching Fellow at nearby Thurgood Marshall Academy. She left behind her wallet, MetroCard, clothes and cell phone.
"We are concentrating on getting the word out in hopes that somebody out there has seen something," said Bryn Mawr alum Hannah Wood.
Upp's brother Navy Ensign Dan Upp said the Facebook campaign gives his family fresh hope.
"We are just trying to hang in there the best we can," said Upp from a naval base in Japan. "We can take it day by day and not speculate on what might happen."
Daily News,
Click your heels together...
Joined: 14 Aug 2006
Posts: 27213
Location: "Onboard" pathenry's desk
resignedPosted:
Tue Sep 09, 2008 1:01 pm
Hannah Upp Spotted!
9/9/08 at 1:30 PM
Remember when we told you about Hannah Upp, the missing Harlem public-school teacher whose friends and loved ones were in a panic? A friend convinced us to publish her missing-person ad (left). "She vanished from her Hamilton Terrace apartment suddenly, leaving behind her purse, wallet, keys, cell phone, passport and credit card," said the pal, Sarah Caldwell. "No one has heard from her since."
Well, Upp has been spotted in Manhattan, checking her e-mail at the midtown Apple Store. A surveillance camera caught her, and after reviewing the tapes, her family confirms that it is indeed the young teacher. Her brother wrote on a Facebook page devoted to the search that they are "ready to welcome Hannah back with love, and with no questions asked."
Hannah hasn't contacted any of her family and friends yet, so they continue to urge people to call 911 if they see her. Then call us afterward, please, because we really want to know what the heck is going on.
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