Piano Guys member, family end search for daughter; say ‘All is not lost’

PORTLAND, Oregon, Oct. 27, 2016 (Gephardt Daily) — The search for Anna Schmidt — the 21-year-old daughter of Jon Schmidt, a member of the St. George-based group The Piano Guys —  has been discontinued.

Anna Schmidt, known as Annie, was reported missing Oct. 19. She was last seen by her roommate on Oct. 16, and police found her car in the Columbia River Gorge area near Portland.

Schmidt’s family said she is an avid hiker and they believe she went off on her own.

The Piano Guys issued the following statement on their website Wednesday:

We’ve been so touched by the outpouring of love and support from everyone — the countless prayers, the social media sharing, the hundreds of volunteers at the rescue site, food donated by local vendors — the unselfish sacrifice of so many on behalf of Jon and his family. People are good. So good. As tragic as these events are, they prove that despite how the media and politics paint our world, the color of love and the human heart shine through everlastingly more vivid. No one should be a stranger when in dire need. We are all family.

We wish we had better news. We were not able to find Annie. The search is being discontinued at this time in consideration of the health and well-being of everyone involved.

But all is not lost. Annie’s Mother, Michelle, wrote a beautiful post that we’d like to share. It summarizes all our feelings as we leave the search site.

The post by Annie Schmidt’s mother reads:

I desire for everyone to know, who has exercised their faith in behalf of our family, your faith has not gone unanswered. We have been literally carried and sustained through day after day. We have felt a calm and a peace beyond ourselves that have enabled us to get up each morning and function and do what needs to be done that day to continue our efforts to find our daughter. We know that this is a result of your prayers. Thank you (times a million).

We have been unable to find our sweet daughter’s body at this time. But these things we know. We know that Heavenly Father has heard the countless prayers and combined faith exercised by people literally all over the world. We know He has heard us, and if He choses to not show us where to find her, then we trust that there is a purpose in this. We know we are in His hands. We know He loves us and everyone who has reached out in such kindness and support. We can feel peace in putting our lives in His hands and pray that His purposes will be fulfilled in this whole experience.

Sheriff’s departments and search and rescue teams from multiple counties in Oregon called off the official search for Annie Schmidt on Sunday.

The Portland Police Bureau sent out a news release, which said that after an extensive search, “… the decision (was made) to suspend search efforts pending new information or developments in the investigation. Search efforts will resume in the event MCSO SAR Coordinators establish credible leads.”

But Annie Schmidt’s family and its supporters continued to search the Bonneville Dam area of the Columbia River Gorge, where her car was found, and where she had planned an upcoming hiking trip with her mother.

Annie Schmidt, an experienced hiker and a Utah resident who had gone to Oregon for the summer, was last heard from on Oct. 16, when she posted to social media. On Oct. 19, mother Michelle Schmidt flew in for a camping trip the two had been planning for weeks. When she arrived at her daughter’s apartment, Annie’s roommate said she assumed mother and daughter already had left as she had not seen Annie for three days.

Annie Schmidt reportedly had purchased a tent and camping equipment for the planned trip, but did not take those items with her on Oct. 16.

On Oct. 21, Jon Schmidt asked for support and prayers on the Facebook page of The Piano Guys, a St. George group that performs piano and cello renditions of popular songs and classical music.

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