Lititz Borough PoliceBrenda Heist in 2013, 11 years after she vanished from Lititz, Pennsylvania, without a trace.On Feb. 8, 2002, 42-year-old Brenda Heist was reported missing from Lititz, Pennsylvania. She had dropped her two children off at school as usual that morning, but when they got home, she was nowhere to be found.At first, the police treated Brendas husband, Lee Heist, as a murder suspect. He was ultimately cleared, but the stigma haunted the family, and other parents in the neighborhood wouldnt let their children play with the Heist kids.Seven years after Brenda disappeared, Lee had her declared officially deceased. He remarried, and the family moved on as best they could without her.Then, in April 2013, the Heists got a phone call: Brenda Heist was alive. Brenda Heists Sudden Disappearance In 2002Lee and Brenda Heist had a typical life in Lititz, Pennsylvania. They had two children a 12-year-old son and an eight-year-old daughter and Brenda worked as a bookkeeper at a local car dealership. But behind closed doors, their marriage was struggling.By 2002, they were in the midst of a divorce. Brenda, worried that her salary wouldnt cover her living expenses after the separation, decided to apply for housing assistance. In early February, she took a few days off of work to look for somewhere to live. Lancaster Online/YouTubeBrenda Heist abandoned her children, Lee and Morgan, when they were 12 and eight years old.On the morning of Feb. 8, Brenda took dinner out to thaw, dropped her kids off at school, and headed to a nearby park, where she found herself crying on a bench. Shed just discovered that her request for financial assistance had been denied, her marriage was over, and she had no idea how she was going to survive.At that moment, three strangers approached. They asked what was wrong, she opened up to them, and they invited her to hitchhike to Florida with them.It was an absurd proposition. Brenda had a stable job and children to take care of. However, on a whim, she agreed. She abandoned her car in a bus station parking lot and headed south. She didnt even leave a note behind.That evening, Brenda Heists family reported her missing. When her vehicle was found four days later, her husband assumed shed been carjacked and killed. Meanwhile, the police were treating him as a suspect in her disappearance. Lancaster New EraA reward for information regarding Brenda Heists disappearance from a 2002 issue of the Lancaster New Era.Lee later passed a polygraph test and was cleared, but the familys troubles were just beginning. Lee lost his job, and he and the kids had to move out of their home. He had to raise his children as a single father, and they all struggled to come to terms with what they assumed was Brenda Heists violent end. In 2010, Lee filed a petition to have Brenda declared legally deceased after waiting the required seven years. He then remarried, and it seemed as if the family was finally starting to move on. Then, in April 2013, Lee Heist got an unexpected call.What Happened To Brenda Heist?When Lee picked up the phone to hear a detectives voice on the other end of the line, he assumed that Brenda Heists remains had finally been found after more than a decade. He couldnt have been more wrong.Instead, the officer informed Lee that Brenda was alive and well. She had just turned herself in for some minor outstanding warrants at a police station in Key Largo, Florida, and admitted that she was a missing person.But where had she been for 11 years?After Brenda arrived in Florida in 2002, she spent two years living on the streets under the name Kelsie Lyanne Smith. She then met a man and moved into a camper with him for seven years.Missing Brenda HeistBrenda Heist in the late 1990s. During this time, she supported herself with odd jobs, such as cleaning boats. She only accepted cash and never applied for any work that would require her to show identification. Around 2010, Brendas boyfriend decided to move to the Florida Keys, and she didnt want to go with him, even if that meant losing her housing. She soon began cleaning the home of Sondra Forrester, and they became friends. In early 2011, Forrester invited Brenda Heist to live with her.She was such an awesome, nice housemate, Forrester told LancasterOnline in 2013. She caused no trouble and my kids loved her.Brenda claimed that her husband had died and that shed never had children. Forrester had no idea that it was all a lie. After a year, Brenda moved out of Forresters home, returning to the streets once again. But by 2013, she was tired of being homeless and running from the law for crimes like forgery and identity theft. That April, she turned herself in and she finally told the police her real name.Coming To Terms With A Mothers AbandonmentAfter the initial shock of learning that Brenda was still alive wore off, another emotion gripped the Heist family: anger. Brenda Heists son, Lee, and daughter, Morgan, had suffered after her disappearance. Theyd lost many friends while their father was being investigated for murder, and theyd had to go through their teenage years without a mother.Brendas disappearance had caused financial struggles for her family, too. At a 2013 press conference, Lee Heist noted, We experienced the loss of a house and car, a job, and unemployment for over a year and a half. Meaning we lost everything, we moved into assisted housing It was not an easy issue.That makes me really mad, said Morgan Heist in 2013. I cant believe she would do that because she was a good mom. She was great. But, I mean, I guess something happened. Something snapped in her.Dr. Phil/YouTubeBrenda Heist opened up about her disappearance on Dr. Phil in 2013.So, why had Brenda Heist done it?She spoke to Dr. Phil while still behind bars in 2013 and opened up about her decision. As reported by Pennsylvania station WFMZ at the time, Brenda told the talk show host, Im not proud of what I did. Im ashamed of what I did, and I have a lot of guilt and its something Im never going to get over.I just thought it would be better if I wasnt there, Brenda continued. After going to the police in April 2013, Brenda Heist spent several months in prison for charges that included stealing a drivers license. She was released that November, but she didnt go back to Pennsylvania.Instead, she moved in with her mother in Texas, where she was set to seek help at a mental health facility. At that time, she still hadnt seen her children or ex-husband.While Brenda maintained hope that she could reunite with her kids someday, they didnt want to hear her apologies. I dont want an emotional reunion, Morgan told WFMZ in 2013. Im not going to go down memory lane with her I hope she respects the fact me and my brother arent ready to talk to her, and we both need to accept this and let time go on.There have been no major updates in Brenda Heists story since 2013, but it remains one of the most bizarre missing persons cases in recent history.After reading about the strange case of Brenda Heist, discover the stories of these 11 mysterious disappearances. Then, learn about Vasile Gorgos, the Romanian farmer who went missing for 30 years.The post Brenda Heist, The Woman Who Vanished In Pennsylvania Then Turned Up In Florida 11 Years Later appeared first on All That's Interesting.