'She's a fighter': Community continues its search for missing University of Iowa student Mollie Tibbetts

Matthew Leimkuehler | The Des Moines Register

Show Caption Hide Caption More than 88,000 remain on missing persons list The National Crime Information Center's Missing Person File was started in 1975. As of Dec. 31, 2017, the NCIC has 88,089 active missing persons records.

BROOKLYN, Ia. — The same poster fills nearly every downtown storefront on Jackstreet Street.

It’s hanging in the deli, a crafts store and the local print shop. One word, typed across the center of the flyer, shouting at each passerby in a blazing red font:

“Missing.”

Community members in Brooklyn, Iowa, an eastern Iowa town of roughly 1,500, continue to search for Mollie Tibbetts, a 20-year-old University of Iowa student who went missing last week.

More: Mom, activists find missing Wisconsin girl in Chicago after disturbing video surfaces on Facebook

“It’s frustrating; it’s powerless,” said Mollie Tibbetts' aunt, Kim Calderwood, of Brooklyn. “We’re racking our brains, thinking what can we think of to tell the investigators. It’s the worst thing … to want to fix something you can't fix.”

Family members reported Tibbetts missing Thursday, Calderwood said. She’s a 5-foot-3 white woman with brown hair and eyes, weighing 120 pounds. A neighbor last saw her going for a jog on Wednesday evening, wearing gym shorts, a black sports bra and running shoes.

The Poweshiek County Sheriff's Department and the state department of criminal investigation provided no new information Sunday beyond “the search is still ongoing.” A Facebook post published by Tibbetts' cousin Emily Heaston on Saturday said investigators were working to trace her digital footprint.

Still, the small town continues to rally. Calderwood said hundreds turned out Friday to comb through the rural roads of Poweshiek County.

More: Dad frantically searches for missing son on Oregon streets

And thousands on social media have shared photos of Tibbetts — of her posing in her senior portraits, and of her smiling wide at a Hawkeyes football game — pleading with friends and family to stay vigilant.

RT #MollieTibbetts #UIowa student disappears under mysterious circumstances in #Brooklyn #Iowa July 18, 2018 when she left to go jogging and it is unknown if she returned home. Contact the Poweshiek County Sheriff's Office at 641.623.5679 with any info #Hawkeyes #IowaHawkeyes #IA pic.twitter.com/ZNow2roSwB — Locate The Missing (@MissingCases) July 21, 2018

Mollie Tibbetts hasn’t been seen or heard from in nearly 24 hours. It is entirely unlike her to go off the grid like this & we are terribly worried about her. She may be in a HS athletic tshirt, denim shorts & chaco sandals. Her phone is off/dead & she’s without her car. — em (@EmilyFenner) July 20, 2018

PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE RETWEET AND HELP SEARCH FOR MOLLIE TIBBETTS ANYTHING HELPS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! pic.twitter.com/ToSNTFRmlB — breck goodman (@shaqtus15) July 20, 2018

‼️good morning friends ‼️ please continue to keep your eyes open for Mollie Tibbetts! She has been missing from Brooklyn, Iowa since between 10 PM on 7/18 and the morning of 7/19. If you have seen or heard anything about her please contact the Poweshiek County authorities 🚨 pic.twitter.com/acTndYjHxD — Alyssa King (@AlyssaDKing) July 21, 2018

Mollie Tibbetts is a rising 2nd year at University of Iowa. Please spread the word! https://t.co/IIh0g1OYHx — Hira (@lookwhoshira) July 20, 2018

PLEASE help us find this young Iowa woman. She’s been missing since July 18. My family has a home in Brooklyn IA & she is a Hawkeye. Look at her pic if you’re passing through IA on Interstate 80 also. #MollieTibbetts #IowaStrong 1-800-346-5507 https://t.co/C8AaT7ZG7w — Tom Arnold (@TomArnold) July 22, 2018

Our thoughts are with Mollie Tibbetts’ family and friends. The University of Iowa is monitoring the situation and will offer support as needed. More information: https://t.co/NmtZv0Djqs — University of Iowa (@uiowa) July 20, 2018

The outpouring of support can be overwhelming, Calderwood said, “in the best way, honestly — to know that you’re cared about that way and she’s cared about that way.”

Described by her aunt as a “beautiful, positive girl,” Tibbetts graduated from the local high school in 2017, where she ran track and competed on the local debate team. She babysat for a number of Brooklyn families in high school and involved herself with the local Catholic church, Calderwood said.

Calderwood stays hopeful “because I know Mollie.”

More: Firefighter who went missing in New York found in California with no memory, police say

“She’s strong and sassy and a fighter and stubborn and she is not a quitter.”

Brooklyn residents, like Joy Manatt Vanlandschoot, have taken to raising awareness despite not knowing Tibbetts personally. Vanlandschoot, who runs a local screen printing company, has printed buttons and magnets to stick on the side of cars.

T-shirts will arrive in the coming days, she said.

“A daughter to anybody in this community is a daughter to everybody,” said Joy Manatt Vanlandschoot. “We all hope the same effort would be made toward our own children.

Cooking a hot meal, hanging a flyer … lending help when your neighbor needs it is just what small towns do, Calderwood said.

More: An Iowa autistic teen is missing. This is why it's a common problem for families.

“I think everyone is doing what they need to do," Calderwood said.

Officials continue to search for Tibbetts. Anyone with information is asked to call the Poweshiek County Sheriff's Office, at 641-623-5679.

Follow Matthew Leimkuehler on Twitter: @mattleimkuehler