Ronald Owen Kimble went missing on April 12, 1977 in Seattle, Washington. I am publicizing this case in hopes others will share his story, with the goal of gathering clues that could potentially lead to his whereabouts. There has been very little public awareness in Ronald’s disappearance. Hopefully that will change with the circulation of this article.

I researched Ronald’s case and found the names of his siblings, parents, and other family members. His parents are now deceased. I reached out to Ronald’s family members for more information on him and his case.

Born on April 21, 1953, Ronald was just six days shy of his twenty-fourth birthday when he vanished. At the time of his disappearance, he had been living a nomadic lifestyle. He was a homeless traveler who often hitch-hiked for rides.

One clue to Ronald’s disappearance is that he has a mental illness, Schizophrenia. When he went missing, he had a disoriented mental status. Whether or not he is still alive, he is still considered an endangered missing adult, due to his circumstances of being mentally unwell and homeless.

Ronald went to Shoreline High School, and he was a member of the class of 1971. I joined the associated alumni Facebook group to see if anyone has heard from him since high school. I know that is a longshot, but I figured it would be worth a try. (Update, August 2, 2021: An alumni member offered to help circulate Ronald’s story at their next reunion!)

Physical description: Ronald is 5’9″, 150 pounds, Caucasian, with reddish-brown / auburn hair and a ruddy skin complexion.

I built a large family tree for Ronald to share with the DNA Doe Network to see if his ancestors match any of their unidentified people’s ancestors, specifically John Doe Delafield, a man who passed away on September 14, 1977. I was able to inform Ronald’s first cousin about Gedmatch and urged him to take a DNA if he was willing. He took a test and uploaded his DNA to Gedmatch. This way, if Ronald is identified from a John Doe’s DNA, he will have a strong lead in the system (a first cousin match).

I have also searched public records to see if I could find any trace of Ronald since 1977, to no avail.

If you have any information on Ronald’s disappearance, please contact the Seattle Police Department at 206-684-5582.

Missing back-packer , missing backpacker , missing homeless man 1977 , missing backpacker 1977 , missing transient 1977 , missing from the PNW , missing from the PNW 1977 , went missing in the PNW , went missing in the Pacific Northwest 1977 , Ron O Kimble , Ronald O Kimble , Ronald O. Kimble missing , Ronald Kimble missing , Ron Kimble missing , red brown hair , red hair , reddish-brown hair , auburnish hair , auburn hair , went missing while homeless , missing man with confused mental status , missing man with altered mental status 1977 , confused man 1977 , missing with mental illness , mentally ill missing man 1977 , mentally disabled , missing schizophrenic man 1977 Seattle , missing from WA , missing in wa , missing in Washington , missing in Oregon , missing in Portland or , missing Pacific northwest 1977