Support for "John & Jane Doe" Families - the Gift of Closure

A Story of Closure and an opportunity to Give Back

I want to share a story. You may read this as a story of sadness or sympathy, but please don’t. Our family views this as an unbelievable “gift from Heaven” and a story of closure. If you are moved by this story, then I ask for your consideration to support with your donation.

Some of you have found your way to this GoFundMe page through another source, and I don’t know you at all – but it doesn’t mean I’m any less appreciative. Some of you are relatives of mine. Some are past/recent co-workers, friends in the community, while others of you, I knew in my grade school days, through high school and beyond. And because my mother -- Nellie -- was a very involved parent in my activities back in the day, some of you may remember her, even if only vaguely.

My father and mother divorced in the late 70’s as I was about to enter high school, and she never remarried. I enrolled at Florida State University (FSU), and in 1987, I earned my commission in the U.S. Air Force through the FSU ROTC program. Meanwhile, my mother returned to her home state of Mississippi.

Speed ahead to the year 1998, and I found myself deployed to an air base in Turkey as a part of a joint task force supporting the no-fly zone over northern Iraq (a post-war condition of Operation DESERT STORM). It was in August 1998 that I spoke with my mom on the phone. Everything seemed normal as it had been during our previous monthly calls as a routine. When I couldn’t reach my mom the following month, I asked her brother to conduct a welfare check on my mother at the apartment where she lived in Jackson, MS. He discovered the apartment was empty and not a trace of Nellie. We of course quickly launched into trying to find my mother, including filing a missing person’s report with the Jackson (Mississippi) Police Department. But since there was no evidence or suspicion that she had disappeared under nefarious circumstances, Jackson PD was naturally not inclined to pursue. Our sleuthing continued for years but never turned up any information on the whereabouts of my mother. We could only hope and wonder. That all changed on December 22, 2023.

I was driving on a state road in northern Alabama headed to Atlanta when my phone rang. My screen displayed “Weatherford TX.” I don’t know anyone in Weatherford, TX, and at the time, I had no idea where Weatherford was other than being in Texas somewhere. Any other time, I would have considered it to be a “spam” call and ignored it. But then by the Grace of God, He told me to answer that call. So, I did.

A gentleman on the other end introduced himself as a Sergeant with the Weatherford Texas Police Department. Again, by the Grace of God, before he said another word, something instinctively told me, this call was about my mother, Nellie. He told me that he would only take a minute of my time. I’ll always remember his next words, “does the name Nellie ring a bell?” I responded, “that’s my mother.”

A call that was supposed to take a minute turned into an emotional hour or more call.

The sergeant (now a Lieutenant) explained, that on October 7, “1998,” a deceased female was discovered in a wooded area outside Weatherford, TX. It was determined that the female had chosen to take her own life, with no evidence or suspicion to suggest otherwise. This has in fact been confirmed. However, there was no identification on or near the body. As a result, because there was no identification to be found, and no vehicles nearby that could have belonged to the deceased person, and no witnesses, etc., she became a “Jane Doe.”

They buried Jane Doe in a Weatherford city cemetery where she has remained. The sergeant continued to explain that for 25 years, various people and crime analysts have never stopped working on the case. But unfortunately, it remained a cold case all these years. That all changed in calendar year 2023, when Weatherford PD was able to scrape together the funds to engage the services of a highly advanced DNA forensic laboratory in Texas.

This laboratory uses cutting-edge DNA sequencing with artificial intelligence and advanced computational tools to solve cases that were once thought impossible. Translated in English, they take the DNA of a person, “Jane Doe” in this case, and map them to a family tree. That technology revealed that the Jane Doe was very likely to be a Ms. “Nellie Faye Redd Gillespie,” and if so, she had an only child (son) – me. That is then what prompted the Sergeant to call on that December day.

So, in 2024, I provided two separate DNA samples, and it was confirmed that Jane Doe was in fact my mother. But to be expected, it took an additional 12+ months for the case to be processed through the requisite criminal justice system of systems before the case could be officially closed, which it finally did a couple of months ago in February 2025. Thus why I have needed to wait to tell this story.

I know many of you are curious and wondering, “why would Nellie have taken her own life?” Well, that of course is not the purpose of this story. We’ll of course never know for sure, but at such time you and I are having a beverage of our choice and you want to know more, then I’m happy to share.

I share that story because of this. After 25 years, our family has now received this wonderful and enormous gift of closure, with the comfort of knowing my mother is in Heaven and not lost to the winds of the unknown. But there are so many other families that have not received that same gift. This case would not have been solved if not for the continued diligent efforts of so many people in Weatherford, Texas, Tarrant County Medical Examiner’s Office, and others, and also would not have been solved if not for the DNA laboratory (Othram) that discovered the linkage. As you can imagine, those efforts and applied technology solutions come with a cost.

That’s why, today, if you have been so moved, and have the means to do so, I hope you will consider donating to this GoFundMe page that I have created. When I close the donation window in Mid-May, I will donate 100% of the proceeds collected in the following manner:

For what it is worth, neither of those organizations know that I’m extending this opportunity. If you would like to donate but would rather donate directly to the Weatherford Texas Police & Fire Foundation and/or Othram, then by all means, please do. In so doing, I would just ask that you consider donating in the name of Nellie Faye Redd Gillespie.

In early June, I will be making a trip to Weatherford, Texas, to personally thank the many people and organizations that doggedly pursued this case as a part of this long journey. At that time, I will present a check to the Foundation on behalf of our family and all those that contribute, in honor of my mother. I will also visit Othram labs outside Houston, TX, and do the same by extending my (your) appreciation with a check from the remaining proceeds collected by all those that donate, and in honor of my mother. While the financial donation to these organizations will pale in comparison to the 25 years of investigative work that has been done, it is my hope that other families facing similar circumstances will benefit from the collective generosity of all so they, too, can experience the sense of relief and closure that our family is now able to experience.

If you would like to view a recent video that Weatherford PD released regarding my mother and the case, then here it is: https://www.facebook.com/share/v/1MfXCb4eEC/

In closing, and on behalf of the families who are awaiting the same closure, they thank you for your donation.

Thank you for allowing me to share our story.

David