KILGORE, Texas — About two weeks after she was first reported missing, Rosemary Rodriguez’s family is still left searching for her.
The 54-year-old was reported missing by her daughters Oct. 8 after a concerned coworker reached out to both saying Rodriguez had not been to her job at Walmart the last two days.
“That is what prompted us to begin looking for her,” Lita Walker, Rodriguez’s daughter, said. “Because usually her routine would be to go to work, and then go home to her boyfriend's house so we just assumed that it was, you know, as usual.”
According to the Gregg County Sheriff’s Office, Rodriguez was last seen around 6:45 p.m. on Oct. 7 wearing her Walmart smock, getting into her green 2014 Chevy Sonic and leaving her boyfriend’s house on Mt. Pisgah Road in Kilgore.
“The time and description of her that is on most of the news articles is her boyfriend’s statement because he is the last person to claimed to have seen her,” Walker explained. “He says that she came by on Monday afternoon, and got some things from his place and left. And that was the last time he saw her."
Her daughters say Rodriguez and her boyfriend had been dating over a year and it was common for her to stay at his house. However, the last time Rodriguez was seen by her family was Oct. 6.
“My mom and her boyfriend came and picked my grandmother up for dinner and they went to eat at the Golden Corral here in Longview,” said Walker. “Then they dropped her back off at her house at about nine o'clock that evening.”
Rodriguez’s car is also missing. It has a silver OU sticker on its back windshield and the license plate number GCM3117.
Her family says Rodriguez had gone through a rough couple of years after divorcing her daughters' father, but things had seemed to be looking up.
“I think she was starting to get past that and for the most part, she was a happy person,” Frances Messer, Rodriguez’s daughter, said. “She also told me that she had plans on going to school to become a pharmacy tech. So it was a good position to be in at Walmart because she wanted to further it, sort of a fresh start for her.”
The daughters say they know their mom would not just leave without saying anything.
“She always instilled in us like you tell us where you're going and you text us or call us whenever you get there,” Messer explained.
A vigil was held Tuesday Oct. 15 for Rodriguez, with her family, friends and coworkers coming together during this tough time.
The family has set up a memorial inside her home. Roses from the vigil surrounded Rodriguez’s photos along with lit candles.
“It gives me hope, reminds me to stay strong and you know hope she's going to come home okay,” said Walker.
Investigators believe criminal activity may be involved in the disappearance.
Anyone with information on Rodriguez’s whereabouts is asked to contact the Gregg County Sheriff’s Office at (903) 236-8408. You may also call Crime Stoppers at (903) 236-STOP or email at greggcountycrimestoppers.org.