Missing woman's family still awaits answers

Shannan Gilbert's family still waits, wonders and hopes.

The case of the bodies found at Gilgo Beach last month began with a search for Gilbert, 24, the Jersey City, N.J., woman who disappeared on Long Island May 1. Police following tips in that case found the remains of four women.

Police ruled out Gilbert as a victim early on. But the identification announced Wednesday of one of the victims was an emotional jolt to Gilbert's family.

"When I heard about it, I started crying," said sister Sherre Gilbert from upstate Ellenville, who learned police had identified one victim as Megan Waterman, 22, of Scarborough, Maine. "Now this is making me question more where my sister is, where she could be, what happened to her."

The two women's families have forged a close bond. They post on each other's Facebook pages. Waterman's aunt, Elizabeth Meserve, monitors Gilbert's page for nasty comments. Both are using the same private investigator. And Meserve and Gilbert's aunt, Lori Grove, have become friends, e-mailing messages of support and prayer.

"We were hoping our nieces were friends and were OK together and that they would be found together," Grove said.

Both Gilbert and Waterman advertised as escorts on Craigslist and had bookings on Long Island the nights they disappeared, police said.

But family members said Gilbert was more than an escort. She loved to sing and had enrolled in an online college course. "She was a good person," Sherre Gilbert said. "She loved all of us. She didn't want to do the escort service."

Police have assured the family the case is active but the waiting is excruciating.

Said Alex Diaz, 28, Gilbert's boyfriend of 21/2 years: "It's something I can't get over until there's an answer."