Volunteers search for Cape Coral woman as disappearance nears 30 days

The desperate search for a Cape Coral woman continues. Lauren Dumolo’s boyfriend, Gabriel Pena, is the last person to see her before she vanished June 19. She will be missing for a month this Sunday if not found by then.

Friends, neighbors and volunteers gathered Wednesday to help police and Lauren’s family search for her.

A group plastered stores at a local plaza with posters of Lauren Dumolo. They all want her to return home, and each poster is a reminder any tip can help.

Volunteers we spoke to don’t know Lauren personally, but they do know she’s loved.

“She’s somebody’s daughter. She’s somebody’s sister. She’s somebody’s mom,” Katie Whalen said. “We need to bring her home, and we just want to help the family.”

The days since Lauren was last seen are passing quickly.

“Everybody needs to know that she’s missing,” Whalen said. “That she’s from here, and she’s missing, and help find her.”

Lauren turned 30 years old this past Tuesday.

“I’m watching her one sister just break down in tears, holding her daughter, and it’s just heartbreaking,” Whalen said. “They need answers. They need her home. They need our community’s help desperately.”

Whalen doesn’t want any more time to pass by without a substantial effort to find Lauren.

“It is going on 30 days, and we don’t want to reach that mark,” Whalen said. “We want to bring her home to her family before that, so we are urgently asking people to please become involved in the searches.”

Saturday, searchers are meeting up to look for Lauren and any possible clues to her whereabouts. The search will begin 11 a.m. at the Publix plaza at US-41 and Del Prado Boulevard North. The search party wants all the community support it can receive.

“We have a missing, now 30-year-old. Yesterday was her birthday, Cape Coral resident,” Cynsi Elser said. “Please come out and search for Lauren.”