OAKLAND, CA — Amy Hillyard, a 52-year-old coffee shop owner and mother of two, remains missing after vanishing March 25 from Oakland’s Cleveland Heights neighborhood, prompting an expanded search involving multiple counties and hundreds of volunteers.
Authorities have classified Hillyard as an at-risk missing person due to an undisclosed medical condition that may leave her disoriented. The search has intensified after Oakland police obtained video footage placing her at Dimond Park around 4:30 p.m. on the day she disappeared, more than two hours after she was last seen leaving her home on Radnor Road around 2 p.m. The discovery prompted concentrated search efforts at the park location Tuesday morning.
About 60 people from the Alameda County Sheriff’s Office joined Tuesday’s search beginning at 8 a.m., with mutual aid teams from Contra Costa and Marin counties assisting alongside volunteers. “The search to bring Amy home continues, and we remain hopeful,” family friend Sarah Wachs told Fox News Digital. “We’ve had hundreds of people come together to look for Amy.” Community search parties formed along Oakland hills and Skyline Boulevard, with volunteers like Brian Molyneaux, who didn’t know Hillyard, joining the effort. “I’d want the same thing for me or someone I love went missing, God forbid,” Molyneaux said.
Hillyard co-owns Farley’s Coffee with her husband Chris Hillyard, operating locations in Oakland and San Francisco’s Potrero Hill neighborhood. The family business was founded in 1989 by Roger Hillyard and named after his grandfather, Jack Farley, who disappeared in the 1920s. Police initially provided conflicting clothing descriptions but clarified Hillyard was last seen wearing a white T-shirt, light blue jeans and white sneakers with a black stripe. She is described as 5-foot-4, about 120 pounds with blonde hair and hazel eyes. A neighbor told KTVU that Hillyard left without her cellphone and has not been heard from since. “Missing since 2 p.m. Wednesday. That’s all we know,” Chris Hillyard told SFGate.
The Oakland Police Department issued an endangered missing alert Sunday evening, sending notifications to mobile phones across the East Bay. Missing-person flyers have spread throughout Oakland and San Francisco, appearing near Jack London Square, along Grand Avenue and at the Powell Street BART station. Posters also cover the windows of Farley’s East coffee shop, where Hillyard worked. Beyond her business role, Hillyard operates a consulting practice and has advised leaders at major organizations including Apple, Gap, Electronic Arts and the Marine Mammal Center. She serves as board president of the Piedmont East Bay Children’s Choir, which said in a statement that her disappearance “has shaken the community.”
Family members are urging residents in Cleveland Heights, Lake Merritt, the Lakeshore District and Crocker Highlands to check home surveillance systems for possible sightings beginning the afternoon she vanished. Susan Eandi, acting as a family spokesperson who has known Hillyard since she was 18, described her as an avid hiker and dedicated community servant. More than 200 people have been searching areas she frequented since her disappearance. Volunteers have been combing hiking trails, canvassing neighborhoods and checking with local businesses. Tom Green, who knows Hillyard through their children, spoke on behalf of the family at Sunday’s vigil, saying Chris Hillyard feels hope has defined their family throughout the ordeal.
Hundreds gathered at Lake Merritt’s pergola Sunday evening for a candlelight vigil, with loved ones, neighbors and strangers coming together to pray and sing. “She’s the kind of person that collects people, brings people together,” friend Serena Khaira said at the vigil. “When you have a problem, she’s generally the first person you reach out to.” Another friend, Susie Wise, said she intentionally speaks about Hillyard in the present tense, calling the vigil “a space for love and hope.” The Piedmont East Bay Children’s Choir, which Hillyard leads, performed “Homeward Bound” during the ceremony. “She’d be the one jumping in, volunteering, leading volunteers, talking to other people in the community,” Green said. “It seems crazy that she’s not here tonight with us.” Farley’s Coffee released a statement saying Hillyard “has been a passionate and active member of the Oakland community for 20-plus years.”
The search remains active as authorities coordinate with multiple agencies and volunteer groups. Oakland police are asking anyone with information to contact the department’s Missing Persons Unit at 510-238-3641, while family members continue requesting residents review security footage from the time period when Hillyard disappeared.
