As a result, Chance Englebert’s grandmother decided to increase the reward fund for information leading to her grandson’s whereabouts by donating $200,000.
This generous act has now grown the reward fund to an impressive $220,000 and is sure to bring attention to the case.
Hope remains that with adequate motivation, somebody will come forward with critical information on what has happened to Chance Englebert since July 6 of last year.
Englebert’s Disappearance
Chance Englebert, his wife Baylee, and infant son, Banks, had traveled to Gering from Moorcroft, Wyoming, for the July 4 holiday.
After an argument with his wife’s relatives, Chance left on foot and was last seen walking in the 700 block of O Street. He is described as Caucasian, 5’9″, with a medium build, and has brown, sun-lightened hair and hazel eyes.
Chance was last seen wearing a short-sleeved, button-down Wrangler shirt, blue Wrangler jeans, a belt with an NRCA buckle, Roper boots, and a black-and-white trucker cap.
“He said he got in a fight with his in-laws and he was wanting to come back to Wyoming, to his house here in Moorcroft, and needed a ride immediately. I was four hours away. It was just no way,” Miller said.
Chance Englebert allegedly contacted Matt Miller, his best friend expressing his desire to leave Nebraska and walk 35 miles to Torrington, but the last confirmed image of him showed him following a map on his phone.
His phone went dark shortly after sending a text message with a grumpy face emoji and a mix of letters.
Despite a powerful storm passing through the area that night, Miller rejects the theory that Englebert fell into the swollen river.
A cash prize was introduced for giving a lead in the case
December 2 marked what would have been his 29th birthday, and his maternal grandmother, Linda Kluender, is making a dramatic effort to increase the reward offered for information in the case.
Her donation resulted from a conversation with her husband after inheriting some money after the death of a family member.
She explained that she wanted nothing more than to find out where Chance was and what had happened to him, and her husband “totally agreed” with her.
Kluender is hoping the timeline will help bring the case to a close more quickly. It’s not the first time that Kluender has donated to the reward fund.
Initially, the family announced an $8,000 reward, with that split between funds raised by family and friends and the other half matched by Kluender.
Over the last three years, the family had raised an additional $12,000 with funds from donations, pledges, and sales of caps and shirts to help spread awareness about the case.
Kluender is spreading the word about the reward through ads circulating in the area, including in today’s Star-Herald, and a billboard on Avenue I, located in the general area where Chance’s phone last pinged on a tower on the night of his disappearance.
Information will also be shared on the “Help Find Chance” Facebook page, which is run by Chance’s mother, Dawn.
The family asks anyone with information about Chance’s disappearance to contact the Gering Police Department.
Kluender said that is the best way to help ensure that tips are legitimate and followed up on.
“There will never be closure. We lost our chance, there will never be closure on this. It would be helpful to have him in a place of dignity that he deserves to be put to rest properly,” Kluender said.
Gering Police Investigation
Gering Police investigator Brian Eads is currently overseeing the investigation.
The investigation has included outside investigators, canine teams, search warrants, and polygraph tests. Baylee Englebert and her family have been thoroughly investigated, but the case remains unsolved.
A human bone was found in 2021 near the location where Englebert disappeared, but it was not his.
The case is still active, and authorities are following every lead.
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