When Melanie Jackson describes her daughter, Megan, the first two words that come to mind are energetic and bright.
“At just 3 years old, Megan was already learning to write and spell,” recalls Melanie. “She had tons of energy and we would spend a lot of time running after her.” Megan loved to play with her toys, run around and play with other children, especially her two older siblings.
“Even though her siblings were older, Megan made sure that she was getting plenty of attention,” Melanie says.
It was March 27, 1991…spring break for the school children in Tyler, Texas, including Megan’s older siblings. Melanie arranged for Megan’s aunt and cousins to come over for a relaxing day of watching movies and playing at the playground. While Melanie and Megan’s aunt remained in the apartment, Megan, her brother and cousins went down to a nearby playground.
“She had only recently been allowed to go out to the playground with her cousins and siblings,” says Melanie. “The playground is right next to our apartment, only a few feet away.”
Around 11:15 a.m., Megan came back to the apartment to grab a snack and take some back to the playground for the other children. Then, about 10 minutes later, the other children returned to the apartment, but Megan was not with them.
“The other children said they hadn’t seen her and thought that she was with me, but she wasn’t,” explains Melanie.
Melanie went out to search for Megan, but when she couldn’t find her, she contacted law enforcement to report her missing. Although there was an extensive search for Megan, law enforcement was not able to track down any witnesses who had seen Megan, nor did anyone report seeing anything suspicious.
This week marks 27 years since Megan Elizabeth Garner disappeared from her home in Tyler, Texas. Law enforcement has received and investigated many leads over the past few decades, but none of those leads have provided them with any answers, nor have they allowed law enforcement to identify a suspect in her disappearance.
Melanie has not given up hope that one day she will see her daughter again.
“Megan, we love you and we are still searching for you,” says Melanie.
Megan Elizabeth Garner would now be 30 years old. This image was created by forensic artists at NCMEC to show what Megan may look like today. At the time of her disappearance, Megan had brown hair and shadows under her brown eyes.
If you have any information about Megan, please call 1-800-THE-LOST or the Tyler Police Department- Missing Persons Unit at 1-903-531-1000.
View her NCMEC poster here.