HAMPTON, Va. - The families of people reported missing are having an especially difficult holiday season with a loved one missing from the dinner table, but one nonprofit isn't giving up hope.
"As long as they're still out here, we're going to be out here," said Joe Slabinski with Water Team Inc.
Slabinski and his team of volunteers are searching for any sign of Codi Bigsby, the body of Shanita Eure-Lewis and several other open cases. Tuesday they searched Briarfield Park in Hampton.
"You just never know what you're going to find when you're out here searching, so you just keep your eyes open for everything," said Slabinkski.
One of those cases is Jay'Von Bailey. He is 19 years old and was last seen on April 14, at a cousin's house in Accomack County. That's his last known location, and there's been no sign of him since.
"He's a very sweet person, kind-hearted," said Bailey's mother Naomi Campbell. "He loved making music, he loved making people laugh."
Campbell just spent her first Christmas without her son.
"I tried to surround myself with people who know Jay'Von, so we could talk about him," said Campbell. "It was just very hard."
An opportunity for closure is why the volunteers with Water Team Inc continue their efforts- they're not giving up hope.
"If it was my family out here I would hope people would come out and help me try and locate my loved one," said Slabinski.
For more information on Water Team Inc's mission, click here.
