Shalaya Porter appears in an image shared by the Philadelphia Police Department; she was last seen on June 5, 2023 – days before her high school graduation.
A teenager set to graduate high school has mysteriously disappeared in Philadelphia just days before the milestone, her family says.
Shalaya Porter, 18, was last seen June 5 on Fairmount Avenue in the Mill Creek neighborhood, according to the Philadelphia Police Department. Law enforcement is currently asking for the public’s help.
“She is 5′ 6″, 120lbs, medium build, brown eyes, light brown complexion, black hair and a nose piercing,” the department said in a June 8 press release. “No clothing description given. She is known to use public transportation, however; her whereabouts are unknown.”
The missing girl’s family is extremely worried and believes that Porter’s vanishing act is involuntary.
“Shalaya would have never missed her graduation,” Porter’s aunt, Felicia Hill, told Philadelphia-based NBC affiliate WCAU. “Shalaya would have never missed the opportunity to go to college. Shalaya would have never left her mom.”
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Family members told WCAU that Porter’s phone had been left on her bed; that her high school graduation was last Friday; that she had a great attendance record there; and that she was enrolled at Morgan State University to study architecture, design and fashion. The young woman was set to begin her studies this fall.
“We just don’t know. That’s the thing that’s killing us the most. The why and the don’t knows, and things like that,” Hill said in comments reported by CBS News. “She was looking forward to graduating and looking forward to going to college, and looking forward to living life and moving on to her next chapter. This is completely out of character when it comes to her. She don’t go this long without calling her mom or contacting her friends.”
On Tuesday, a community gathering was held at Motivation High School on 59th Street and Baltimore Avenue. There, friends and family passed out some 3,000 flyers to help with search efforts.
“My daughter is a beautiful, wonderful, smart, intelligent, young lady,” Porter’s mother, Kaleia Porter, said as she tried not to cry at the Tuesday rally and search effort, WCAU reported.
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The family has said they aren’t giving up search efforts.
“Help by prayer, help by calling us if you know anything,” Hill said, according to CBS News.
“I just want my baby home,” Kaleia Porter added.
Police have not shared an update in the case since their press release last week. As of this writing, Porter has not been seen for nine days. Police are asking anyone with information about whereabouts to contact the Southwest Detective Division at 215-686-3183.
“I love you baby, come home,” Kaleia Porter said. “I miss you and we are going to get through this.”
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