Rose Lena Cole was 16 when she disappeared from Oakland, California, sometime in the summer of 1973. She had been court-ordered into the Synanon Foundation after admitting drug use and repeated runaways; Synanon later became notorious for cult-like practices. Reports place her disappearance as occurring between the fall of 1972 and summer 1973 while she was at the facility.

Before she vanished, Rose sent two letters to her family. One said she had been living on the streets in San Francisco’s Chinatown, was suffering from a kidney infection, and intended not to contact her family again until she turned 18 to avoid being returned to Synanon. Her family never heard from her after those letters, and there has been no confirmed sign of her since. The case is classified as an endangered runaway, but Synanon’s control over participants and the circumstances of her departure have left many questions.

Anyone who knew Rose, saw her in the Bay Area in 1972–73, or has information about her time at Synanon is asked to come forward.