SHEBOYGAN — Andrea Ingalls said her heart fell into her stomach when she got the call saying her 15-year-old niece was missing from a care center in Milwaukee.
That was on Monday. But her niece, Liberty (Libby) Lucas, disappeared Saturday morning.
"I need her to know that we need her home," said Ingalls, who's Libby's closest relative in the area.
Libby had been staying at Lad Lake Academy since May. She left unexpectedly around 9:20 a.m. on Saturday and hasn't been seen since.
Her father, Joshua (Josh) Lucas lives in Minnesota and said Lad Lake officials contacted them two days after Libby went missing.
"I was told that there was an old number on my account."
Watch: What we know about a 15-year-old girl missing from her care center:
I reached out to Lad Lake administrators who say Josh's new number was also listed as an emergency contact.
In a phone interview, Community Relations Director Jeff Pease said "We're certainly looking at what we need to change in our practices to evaluate so this doesn't happen again."
Administrators said they filed a missing persons report with Milwaukee police an hour after Libby took off, and apologized for not notifying the family earlier.
"She was supposed to be somewhere safe, under adult care," Ingalls explained.
Josh said it's not normal for Libby to not reach out to family, because despite her shyness, she's also many other things.
"Creative, beautiful, fiercely loyal. She sticks up for the underdog all the time," he noted.
Libby was last seen wearing a black tank top and Christmas-themed sweatpants. Half her hair was dyed green, but a bit faded.
"Nobody's mad at her. Things will still work out," Josh remarked.
"I promise you, I'm not stopping, I'm not stopping," Ingalls added. "I will find you. We all will find you."
If you have information regarding Liberty Lucas' disappearance, Milwaukee PD is asking you to call (414) 935-7272.
