His pompous vanity always gets in the way of whatever story he's assigned to. I feel sorry for his wife, kids and relatives... he must be insufferable.
> The Associated Press
June 26, 2005
Several hundred people, including classmates who traveled to Aruba with missing teen Natalee Holloway, attended a hometown fund-raiser for the Holloway family.
Holloway, 18, went missing May 30 on a Mountain Brook High School graduation trip to the Caribbean island with classmates and chaperones.
At the fund-raiser Saturday afternoon, a group of six Mountain Brook teenage girls put on matching silver wishbone necklaces, a sign of their lasting friendship.
"Natalee still has hers," Mallie Tucker said at the concert raising money for the search for Holloway. "Natalee is my best friend and I'd do anything to bring her home."
"We just get together and pray," said Frances Ellen Byrd, also wearing her wishbone necklace. "We can't wait for her to get home."
Byrd was at Carlos and Charlie's in Aruba the night Holloway disappeared. "I never saw her when she left," Byrd said. "It was closing time and everyone was leaving."
She said that Holloway was with 17-year-old Joran van der Sloot - now detained by police in her disappearance - as early as 9:30 p.m. the night of the disappearance, before leaving with him after the bar closed at 1 a.m.
She said it was hard to keep track of all the 124 Mountain Brook High School students as they left the bar.
"I don't blame anyone," Byrd said.
But there is still guilt, some of Holloway's fellow students said.
"A lot of us feel personal guilt," said Milner Owens, who was on the trip to Aruba. "People are trying not to relive it. I wish we had done something. We've all learned a lesson from this. We've changed. Life is altered."
Beau Barron, also on the Aruba trip, remembers being at the bar with Holloway that night, and wonders how it could have turned out differently. "It's always in the back of everybody's mind," he said.
The chaperones are not to blame, Barron said.
"They weren't there to hold our hands," he said. "By no means should this be put on them at all."
Said Barron: "We're trying to keep hope alive. Nobody's giving up."
A group of 24 volunteers, including eight divers, with Texas EquuSearch began searching Aruba with sonar equipment and dogs on Saturday.
Barron lined up with others in front of Otey's in Crestline to donate money to help cover the costs of the search effort in Aruba and to pay for expenses for Holloway's family to stay there as long as necessary.
Doug and Joy Smith, co-owners of Otey's, hosted the benefit, with musicians Matthew Mayfield and Will Mason of the Moses Mayfield band performing. Donated items were auctioned off.
"This is a way we can show our support," Joy Smith said.
"It's a strong community," Doug Smith said. "Everybody's ready to do everything they can."
'Scarborough Country' for June 2
SCARBOROUGH: Let me ask you, Frances Ellen, when is the last time you saw her?
BYRD: That night.
SCARBOROUGH: Yes, you saw her the night...
BYRD: I was with her that night.
SCARBOROUGH: You were with her that night.
BYRD: Yes. Yes.
SCARBOROUGH: All the friends went back to the hotel. And did you all see her go back to the hotel or not?
BYRD: I am just leaving it that we saw her there.
SCARBOROUGH: Saw her that night. BYRD: Right.
YODER: Yes. Absolutely.
And just think Fox has renewed Geraldo's contract and Greta is now going to MSNBC.