Family of Colin Gillis speaks

The family of a missing Tupper Lake teenager just wants him to come home. Parents John and Patty Gillis, along with son Lyndon, spoke with reporters assembled at the Piercefield Highway Department March 14, headquarters in the search for 18-year old Colin Gillis. "Collin, if you are out there, no one is going to be mad at you. Please get in touch and let us know that you are okay," John said. "Reach out to us and let us know that you're okay," Patty added. "The bottom line is, we want you to come home." "I got the call Sunday afternoon, and I was here as soon as I could get here," Lyndon said. "I was in the woods that evening and stayed there looking for him into Monday." Mr. Gillis said that the last time he and Patty had seen their son was around 8:30 p.m. Saturday evening, when he left to go to a party. "Patty and I had just had dinner with him," he said. "He was pumped up about seeing his friends and joking about how this was the 2012 reunion. It was normal for him to go out and see friends. We were laughing and having a good time, like we always do with Collin." The family also took the chance to thank the Department of Environmental Conservation, State Police and local fire departments and volunteers for their work in searching for their son. "We don't know where he is, but we know where he is not thanks to the incredible support from the people of this area," John said. "There were 404 volunteers here yesterday and they have all been searching hard to find him. We are just riding the wave of this support." "That's the real question; where is he," Lyndon said. "Being out with the search crews has been amazing. The town support has been exceptional and everyone has the same goal - to find Collin. The people here are what is helping us through this." "He's a great kid. Why would you not want to find him?" Patty said. Patty also said that Collin's younger brother, Ian, was in classes at Tupper Lake High School, where he was being kept busy both during and after school. "He is in the musical at the school this weekend and has been kept busy with that," she said. "It's good for him to be busy." Mr. Gillis said that he could not think of any reason why Collin would have gone into the woods that evening, but that he was experienced in the local terrain. "He's a Boy Scout and he is very familiar with the woods," John said. "I can't think of any reason why he would have went into them." "We know the woods, and we were taught what to do if we get lost in the woods," Lyndon said. Colin Gillis was last seen at about 1:45 a.m. Sunday, March 11, walking on Route 3 near the Franklin/St. Lawrence County line. The family urged anyone with information on Collin to call the New York State Police at 897-2000.

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Family of Colin Gillis speaks

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