The mother of Kyron Horman, a little boy who disappeared from Portland, Oregon, six years ago, said in an open letter that she wishes the "evil" person responsible would "grow a conscience and do the right thing."
The letter was released Saturday, the anniversary of the day Kyron vanished.
His mother, Desiree Young, described the agonizing heartache of not knowing where her child is.
"What is it like to have a missing loved one? Every day is just as painful as the last," she wrote in the letter, posted on the "Justice for Kyron Horman" GoFundMe page. "You struggle to hold on to hope when you are constantly riding a roller coaster of emotions. You struggle to remember and find any bit of happiness, but are convinced that it no longer exists. Many moments and events in your family's life that should be celebrated are just reminders that you still have someone missing from it."
Kyron, who was 7 years old when he disappeared, was last seen by his stepmother, Terri Horman, walking to his classroom at Skyline Elementary School in Portland on June 4, 2010.
When the boy failed to return home later that day, his family called the school and discovered he had never shown up to class. Search teams scoured an area spanning several miles, but there was no sign of Kyron. Authorities later reclassified the case from a missing endangered child to a criminal investigation.
In the weeks following the boy's disappearance, his father, Kaine Horman, filed for divorce from Terri Horman, citing irreconcilable differences. He also obtained a restraining order against her, having learned that she was allegedly involved in an unrelated murder-for-hire plot.
The search for Kyron was one of the most intense in recent Oregon history and attracted national attention. His parents have held countless vigils, passed out thousands of fliers and issued numerous public pleas, all to no avail.
"Each year I reflect on where we are and how I can change it," his mother wrote on Saturday. "I try to think of at least one more thing I can do. I can tell you of all of the things that we have done to bring Kyron home, but you have all been here with us to see it. And still, we don't have Kyron home."
In June 2012, Young filed a lawsuit against Kyron's stepmother, accusing her of kidnapping or hurting the boy by herself or with help from others. The suit asked a judge to order the woman to return Kyron or, if he is dead, reveal where his remains are.
Young later dropped the case, saying she didn't want to jeopardize the police investigation.
The Multnomah County Sheriff's Office, the lead agency investigating Kyron's disappearance, said it continues to follow up on tips. Terri Horman has not been named a suspect, and she denies any involvement. No arrests have been made.
In her letter, Young said she prays "for the evil one to grow a conscience and do the right thing."
She also said she has no reason to believe her son is not alive.
"I still expect to get that phone call that I am waiting for, you know the one, 'Desiree, this is the police, we have found Kyron,'" she wrote. "I want that phone call more than anything, I want to see the police standing on my doorstep waiting to tell me they've found him. I have dreamt of the day I get to hold onto Kyron again, and hug him until he says I can't breathe Momma. I have gone over that moment and planned it out in every detail, in my head. I have dreamt of it so many times that it feels real, until I realize it's a dream."
Kyron has blue eyes, light brown hair and a big smile.
Anyone with information in the case is asked to contact the Multnomah County Sheriff's Office at 503-988-4300.
Read Desiree Young's letter here:
6 LONG YEARS
What is it like to have a missing loved one? Every day is just as painful as the last. You struggle to hold on to hope when you are constantly riding a roller coaster of emotions. You struggle to remember and find any bit of happiness, but are convinced that it no longer exists. Many moments and events in your family's life that should be celebrated are just reminders that you still have someone missing from it. Each day you wake up and pray that he/she will be brought home to you because you just can't bear another day without them. And each day as you go to sleep, you pray for it all over again. You are stuck reliving all of the regrets you have, over and over and over again. If you could just go back in time and change it. You pray for the evil one to grow a conscience and do the right thing, to give you answers, to give you some measure of peace even if it's small, and you pray for them to give you your loved one back. Against all of the odds you never give up, you never stop, you always pray, you wish on every star, and you continue getting up and doing it all over again because you will never give up on hope, you will never give up on them.
We have so many missing children in the World and their families are going through similar feelings and experiences.
What is it like now that Kyron has been missing for 6 years?
Each year I reflect on where we are and how I can change it, I try to think of at least one more thing I can do. I can tell you of all of the things that we have done to bring Kyron home, but you have all been here with us to see it. And still, we don't have Kyron home. Each day I still expect to get that phone call that I am waiting for, you know the one, "Desiree, this is the police, we have found Kyron!" I want that phone call more than anything, I want to see the police standing on my doorstep waiting to tell me they've found him. I have dreamt of the day I get to hold onto Kyron again, and hug him until he says I can't breathe Momma. I have gone over that moment and planned it out in every detail, in my head. I have dreamt of it so many times that it feels real, until I realize it's a dream and I have just woken up.
I hope that today you will think of Kyron and all of our missing children … I would love to hear how you raised awareness for a missing child, shared their picture and story, or simply did something to recognize the day.
I hope you think of Kyron today because it takes just one person to save a life and bring him home.
Desiree Young, Kyron's Momma
