Our card this week is Randy Leach, the four of hearts from Idaho.

When Randy was 20 years old, he decided to take a break from college and hitchhike through

the American West.

What was supposed to be a journey of self-discovery turned into a mystery that 42 years later remains

unsolved.

I'm Ashley Flowers, and this is The Deck.

In the 80s, Marjorie and Richard Leach were at home in Northern Wisconsin preparing

for Thanksgiving as they eagerly awaited a phone call from their 20-year-old son Randy,

who was hitchhiking out west to visit some relatives.

The couple stayed close to the phone because it had been a few weeks since they had last

heard from Randy and they had a lot of catching up to do.

But Thanksgiving Eve came and went and Randy never called.

Marjorie thought it was weird because usually her son was good about checking in at least

once a week since he left home on November 1st.

But the last time a Leach's had heard from Randy was on November 6th.

Marjorie remembered that phone call vividly because it had been her birthday.

During their conversation, Randy wished her a happy birthday and told her that he had

taken a job at a dairy farm in Idaho Falls, Idaho, and that he might head toward California

and Oregon soon.

Randy said that he was especially excited to visit his sister Renee at her new house in

Bend, Oregon, which was his eventual destination.

But for most of the month of November, Renee and her husband were in the process of moving,

...