Posted at: 06/03/2009 5:35 PM | WHEC.com
Updated at: 06/03/2009 6:38 PM
By: Lynette Adams

Brittanee Drexel update

In five weeks of searching, there has been no sign of Brittanee Drexel. There have been dozens of leads and sightings. None have panned out.

Brittanee�s mother, Dawn Drexel, has been in South Carolina since the beginning. She is determined as ever, but she told News 10NBC by phone Wednesday she�s emotionally spent.

�This is very, very difficult because you don�t know, you just don�t know if she�s still here with us�or she�s not�.But we�re trying to keep hopeful that we can find her still,� Drexel said.

Drexel has traveled to Charleston and points in between, talking to people, handing out flyers. This weekend, Brittanee�s story will air on �America�s Most Wanted.� That gives Dawn Drexel hope.

�I�m trying to get her on national television and keep her face out there so if somebody did see something or heard something, that they would come forward.�

Drexel hopes to stay in South Carolina until she finds Brittanee, but that may be dependent on the generosity of others. That�s what has kept her there this long.

She says the police are still actively involved in this case. She says some leads are coming in, they�re just not turning up anything. She�s pinning big hopes on the �America�s Most Wanted� broadcast.

While the search continues in South Carolina, work is going on here in Rochester.

�I�m continuing at the pace that I was five weeks ago,� Brittanee�s boyfriend John Grieco said.

Grieco had to come home after weeks of searching. He�s working to make enough money to go back. He�s also put together a major fundraiser for June 26. It�s three parties in three locations at the Dome Arena that he hopes will raise money and keep Brittanee�s story alive.

�If people stop searching, I�m going to continue to search for the rest of my life, honestly,� Grieco said.

Grieco�s fundraiser is called, �Fill the Dome and Bring Brittanee Home.� Again, it�s at the Dome Arena in Henrietta on June 26. It will feature celebrity guests from some of your favorite television shows. Grieco says he�s looking for more sponsors and people to rent booths.

For more information or for tickets, you can call 453-0282.

For more Rochester, NY news, go to our website, www.whec.com.