On the afternoon of March 25, 1996, 27-year-old Renee Simard left her parents’ home on Étienne-Gagnon Street in Matane, Quebec, saying she was going for a walk and never returned. She was seen around 2:00 p.m. near the McDonald’s on Avenue du phare Est and about 2:30 p.m. near the wharf along the Matane River where it meets the St. Lawrence. She was 5 feet 4 inches tall, about 117 pounds, with brown hair, light-colored eyes and a scar on her abdomen from prior pancreas surgery. At the time she wore a three-quarter navy blue winter jacket, faded blue jeans and black mid-calf leather winter boots.

Renee was one of fourteen children, described as a quiet person who rarely strayed far from home. She was being treated for depression and required daily medication. Her family searched the shoreline between Matane and Les Méchins and the Sûreté du Québec divers scoured the river mouth for three months without finding her. Investigators considered accidental drowning and suicide among the possibilities but no evidence has confirmed any conclusion.

Does anyone who lived in Matane in March 1996 remember seeing Renee that afternoon or have information about her movements along the wharf or Avenue du phare Est?