A month later, and still no sign of missing Monroe woman

MONROE — A Monroe woman who is considered a vulnerable adult has now been missing for a month.

Kenna Harris, 25, was last seen by her family at their home in Monroe on March 31. It’s unusual for her to be out of touch this long, said her mother, Kelli Harris. Ever since Kenna got into a high-speed roll-over crash six years ago, she has stayed with the family as she recovered. She had suffered severe head trauma, as well as serious back injuries, and has needed extensive rehabilitation. These days, Kenna doesn’t appear disabled in any noticeable way, but the traumatic brain injury has taken a toll on her mental health, Kelli said.

The last time Kelli talked to her daughter was on the phone the morning of the day she disappeared. Kenna was anxious about going to her job at the Walmart in Monroe.

“It just seemed like she was having a bad day,” Kelli said.

Kenna’s brother and father tried to encourage her, too, Kelli said. When they went into the backyard to do some work, they thought Kenna was getting ready for work.

When the DART bus for those with disabilities came to pick Kenna up, she was gone.

She apparently had packed a backpack, including a yoga mat and her daily medications, and walked away. A neighbor girl reportedly talked with her briefly, around 11 a.m. Kelli said her daughter always was good with children.

Around noon, Kenna went to a Chase Bank in Monroe and drained her account of its remaining $230. Within that same hour, she got on a Community Transit bus near a Rite-Aid and rode it to Snohomish Station, on Bickford Avenue.

There, an employee at a Subway sandwich shop said he recognized Kenna. She had come inside to ask for gluten-free bread. He said they didn’t have any, so she left.

“Kenna is that kind of person,” Kelli said. “She’s super kind, adorable and friendly — and most often when someone meets her, they don’t forget her.”

The employee was the last person known to have seen Kenna. Snohomish County sheriff’s detectives gathered surveillance from nearby businesses and buses, but there’s no footage of her leaving the area, spokesperson Courtney O’Keefe said.

The last time Kenna’s phone connected with the T-Mobile network was 12:30 p.m. on March 31, around the time she would’ve gotten on the bus. Detectives believe she was texting a friend, looking for somewhere to stay.

On April 2, Kenna’s work direct deposited her paycheck. That money has remained in her account, untouched, Kelli said.

Since then, there have been no leads on her whereabouts. The COVID-19 pandemic has made the search all the more difficult: With fewer public places open, there are fewer places to inquire. Even getting someone’s attention has proven challenging. When Kelli went to the Fred Meyer store at Snohomish Station to pass out flyers, strangers often didn’t make eye contact, as they attempted to give as wide a berth as possible out of fear of contracting the virus.

Those who do stop to talk have been sympathetic, Kelli said, but so far there’s been little information to work with.

A Facebook page, “Please Find Kenna Harris,” has gained 1,300 followers, and has become a place to compile potential tips, photos, calls for help and updates on the search.

“Kenna, please come home,” Kelli wrote on the page Saturday, with a picture of her and her daughter together. “No one is mad at you. We all love and miss you so much. Dad says he is ready to take you car shopping and there are a lot of people that want to help you find your own place to live if that is what you want to do.”

Kelli said her daughter lately had been wanting more independence. Because she’s 25, law enforcement can’t force Kenna to return home. O’Keefe said the sheriff’s office just wants to touch base with her.

“We want to check on her, just to make sure she’s OK,” O’Keefe said on Friday. “We just want to verify she’s all right.”

Kelli described her daughter as a “living rainbow” who will “inevitably find a way to unleash your laughter.” Kenna graduated from Monroe High School in 2012 with a 3.9 GPA and — after her crash and while fighting her way through rehabilitation — obtained her associate’s degree at Everett Community College. When she was a college freshman, she was an English tutor.

“I’m at a loss without my speller,” Kelli said. “She can spell anything.”

A lover of sports, Kenna could often be seen swimming laps at the aquatic center in Snohomish, and working out at Emerald City Fitness or YMCA in Monroe.

Kelli said she misses her daughter’s hugs and the stories she brought home every day. She hopes someone has seen Kenna, and is asking anyone who was at Snohomish Station on March 31 to provide any information they can.

“It’s so hard to believe somebody didn’t see something,” Kelli said.

Kenna Harris has short reddish-brown hair and hazel green eyes and is 5-foot-8. She was last seen wearing blue jeans, black shoes, a large black knit scarf, a gray knit beanie and a black jacket.

Detectives with the sheriff’s Major Crimes Unit continue to investigate. Anyone with information about Harris’ whereabouts is asked to call 911 or the sheriff’s anonymous tipline at 425-388-3845.

Zachariah Bryan: 425-339-3431; zbryan@heraldnet.com. Twitter: @zachariahtb.