Share Your Story

Video from LAURI K.
Amy's 3rd Grade Teacher

Reflection from LAURA P.
Amy's friend

I'm happy to share my fond memories of Amy with you and the Mihaljevic family. I grew up in Bay Village and went to St. Raphael's. 

When I was around 10 years old, I started taking horseback riding lessons at Holly Hills Farm, and that's where I first met Amy. We had some classes together, and both fell in love with the same pony: Razzle. My friend's older sister had her own horse that she boarded at Holly Hills, and soon we were all biking up there even when we didn't have a scheduled lesson. 

I was a bit of a tomboy and a kind of old soul, and I think that's what connected Amy and me. We spent a lot of time giggling in the barn stalls just talking about things little girls do. School, mean teachers, parents, siblings, and books. 

I remember I had just discovered the Saddle Club book series and was excited to tell Amy about it. She had been riding horses for a bit longer than I had, and she told me about an award she had won as the girls in the books did. I remember being so impressed!

I also ran into her at the bike rack of the Bay Village library after school. My dad had recently garbage-picked a bright orange classic Schwinn Collegiate for me, and I loved it. It was really old and way too big for me. Amy admired it. She told me how she liked antiques and old stuff. I did, too. She proudly showed me her bike, and I admired her basket in the front. We also talked that day about our beloved dogs, both of whom happened to be named Jake. 

When Amy was kidnapped, our class went down to the church every day to pray for her. I will never forget that awful day in February when we learned she had been murdered. We had just come back into the classroom after gym class when our teacher shared the news of her death. One of my classmates said, "How can she be dead? We prayed for her every day." Many students and the teacher were crying, including me. 

I will never forget Amy. I hope, with all my heart, that advancement in DNA testing will lead to her killer being found. I have donated, and will continue to donate to the fund. As a mother of two daughters myself, I cannot imagine the heartbreak and grief that Mark and Jason have felt for all these years. 

I hope sharing my small memories of Amy helps others to know her. I wish I could have known her better. I wish, most of all, that she gets justice. 

With love and appreciation for the Mihaljevic family.

Laura P.