Celebration of Life is Sunday for Dana Smithers

The case of the missing woman from the Poconos came to a halt when her remains were found a year later, but what happened to Dana Kristine Smithers still remains a mystery.

A Celebration of Life is being held for Smithers on Sunday, June 25 at the Kalahari Convention Center in Pocono Manor, Pennsylvania from 12-3 p.m.

Monroe County Coroner Thomas Yanac conducted the autopsy with a forensic odonatologist that helped confirm the identity of the missing 45 year old woman, Dana Kristine Smithers, using dental records. Results of the autopsy and the cause of death are still pending further testing and toxicology results from Mercyhurst University Forensic Science Department in Erie.

According to the Stroud Area Regional Police Department, the cause and manner of death are currently undetermined. The case remains an active and ongoing investigation.

Stacey Smithers is Dana's older sister and only sibling. She said, "This has really taken a toll on our family, we've needed the privacy since they found her to really process it all. We are currently focused on this Celebration of Life service for my sister."

"But…we need to find out what happened, we need to know what happened. We don't want this case to just go by the wayside because she was found. I've come to hate the word closure, but we need to know and we need someone to be responsible for this and held responsible for this."

"I'm not OK, this is unacceptable. I've been trying to be really strong throughout this whole thing, and then I had a chance to breathe. Now, is when I just cry. It's tough. None of this is acceptable or fair."

Dana Smithers was last seen on May 28, 2022 at approximately 11:05 p.m. via surveillance camera leaving her friend's home in Stroudsburg.

Stacey Smithers claims Dana had to have come back to her own home, as her phone, purse, keys and medication were all found there later.

"We knew something was wrong when she didn't come home to go to Knobles that Monday, it was a family tradition every year. That's when we called the police."

"The police told us she was an adult and could leave if she wanted to," said Stacey Smithers. "We pursued it for another five days before they finally filed a missing person's report. We went over the timeline, she would never have been gone this long, or left her six year old daughter or missed their Memorial Day trip."

"We knew something was wrong. We weren't really saying it out loud, but we knew something was really wrong."Stacy Smithers said they started plastering flyers with Dana's picture everywhere around town and on the internet and police were on the lookout.

More: Remains found in Stroudsburg identified as missing woman Dana Smithers

"Stroudsburg Area Reginal Police and State Police did a search through her home and photographed everything. They brought in cadaver dogs and also searched neighboring Glen Park. They asked everyone all the questions, I guess eliminating suspects."

Stacey Smithers created a Facebook page called "Finding Dana" in the hopes that someone might know something or say something that could help in any way.

On April 27, 2023, a Stroudsburg Borough employee discovered human remains in the wooded area off the Interstate 80 East on/off ramp at the Park Avenue Interchange.

This location, coincidently, sits right across the street from the Compton's Pancake House where Dana Smithers' two older children worked, Ryan and Paige.

"My nephew and niece were devastated and little Penelope, which is now 7 is asking a lot of questions. She's too young to really get it. We tried to shield her always explained that mommy was away but would be back and now we are telling her she's not coming back."

Stacey Smithers said there are still no leads, that she is aware of, about what happened to her sister.

"The most action we had was the possible tie to Bryan Kohberger because of his ties to the area."

Bryan Kohberger is accused of killing four University of Idaho students. He and his parents lived in Monroe County. Despite no evidence connecting the two cases, Kohberger's parents were called to testify before a grand jury regarding the Smithers investigation.

SARP released a press release stating they had no evidence tying Dana Smithers' disappearance in any way to Kohberger.

The family has set up a GoFundMe page to help with funeral expenses, https://www.gofundme.com/f/help-with-funeral-expenses-for-dana-k-smithers

This article originally appeared on Pocono Record: Mystery still surrounds disappearance of Dana Smithers