Delma Lou Sits Poor, known as Babe, was 13 when she disappeared from the Pine Ridge Reservation in South Dakota on February 20, 1974. She and a friend left the Seventh Day Adventist School in the Wakpamni (number four) community to walk a back road toward Manderson during a severe snowstorm with high winds and subzero temperatures. The friend turned back after developing frostbite; Delma continued and was never seen again.

At the time she was last seen Delma was 5 feet 5 inches, 135 pounds, with black hair and brown eyes. She wore a white down-filled jacket with brown sleeve stripes, brown bell-bottom pants, and sneakers. Ground and air searches were carried out in the Calico community area but found no trace; the family says official searches ended after about a week and they have continued to follow tips and conduct their own searches. After seven years with no contact Delma was legally declared deceased, though her remains have not been recovered and the family suspects foul play. The Oglala Sioux Tribe Department of Public Safety and the Bureau of Indian Affairs Missing and Murdered Unit are investigating.

If anyone has information about Delma’s route or sightings around February 20, 1974, please share what is known.