Thomasboro, IL, May 1995. A quaint village in Champaign County, this small town was rocked by the discovery of an unidentified woman’s remains. The cause of death was determined to be homicide, but the crime remains unsolved to this day.
Duane Northrup, former Champaign County coroner, took over the case in 2004, and in 2019, producers for a true-crime television series expressed interest in helping identify the woman. The show’s producers offered the services of genetic genealogists and helped fund the collection of extra DNA material from the woman’s remains.
They succeeded in 2020, identifying the deceased as Keri Lyn Wyant, born October 18, 1971 in Galesburg, IL.
Her nameless tombstone would remain untouched for another half decade — until local Girl Scout Ella Plotner, 14, decided to do something about it.
For her Silver Award, Ella needed to complete a service project. After stumbling upon the site and discovering that Wyant had been identified, she decided to rectify the situation.
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“I feel like everybody deserves a proper grave,” Ella told The Daily Illini.
Ella and her mother Melissa Plotner contacted Northrup, who explained that Wyant had a strained relationship with her parents, and that despite the identification, they had no intention of claiming her or making any updates to her gravesite.
“She did have parents that were living, but their relationship was really estranged,” Melissa said. “They didn’t come forward to claim her, and they’re not planning on doing any updates to the stone that’s there.”
According to local reporting, Wyant spent her early years in Galesburg, leaving home at 14 and later working a string of fast food jobs across Illinois and Texas. She gave birth to a son in 1994 and was last seen that year before her remains were found in Thomasboro.
That history — and the lack of a proper memorial — is what led Ella to launch “Operation Jane Doe,” a fundraising effort to raise $1,300 to purchase a new gravesite and headstone for Wyant.
Ella is working with Adams Memorial to manufacture the headstone, which she designed. The final product will be rose colored with Wyant’s name inscribed on it. To support the endeavor, she’s collecting donations and selling baked goods.
Donations are being accepted at Philo Exchange Bank, and Ella will host a bake sale on April 26 from 10 a.m to 3 p.m. at the Creative Farmshed and Shop Spring Market in Tolono, IL.
The Champaign County Sheriff’s Office is still investigating Wyant’s death, and urges anyone with information on the case to contact them at 217-384-1204.
