Family, friends and supporters of Joshua Guimond will be joining forces with victims of sexual abuse to host the “Justice for Josh” march on Nov. 7.
Guimond, a student at St. John’s University in Collegeville, MN, disappeared without a trace from the St. John’s campus on November 9, 2002. On that evening, 20-year-old Joshua left a small card party at a friend’s apartment on the St. John’s University campus in Collegeville, MN around midnight. His friends believed he was just making a trip to the bathroom, but when he did not come back after 15 minutes, they assumed he had just walked back to his dorm room. He has not been seen since. According to his family, Joshua did not have his glasses or contact lenses, his car, credit cards, or even a coat that was appropriate for the weather. Nothing was missing from his dorm room. His parents remain convinced that he was taken against his will.
Joshua’s family, along with supporters, advocates and other victims of campus crime, are flying in from around the country and uniting to remember Joshua. A petition will be presented to the Stearns County sheriff demanding accountability.
St. John’s University recently denied a request by the family to begin the Justice for Josh march on campus, at the site where Joshua was last seen. According to University representative Shawn Vierzba, such a march, “would not be productive, and that the speculation and conjecture likely generated by such a march could in the end be more harmful to the efforts to find Josh.”
According to Joshua’s father, Brian Guimond, “One of several new facts regarding Joshua’s disappearance that we need to explore involves 11 known sex offenders who resided on campus when Joshua disappeared. If that is the case, we may never know the truth. The University and Abbey have a long history of withholding information from the public and law enforcement authorities.” Guimond said the number of sexual victims would appear to be more than 100 and the public needs to be aware of this.
The day’s events on Nov. 7 will begin with a march near the St. John’s campus at noon, followed by a rally in front of the Stearn’s County Sheriff’s Office in St. Cloud scheduled for 2 p.m. In a news release, the Guimond family said that several facts and new information regarding Joshua’s disappearance will be made public during the event. At the Stearns County Sheriff’s office, organizers will demand that law enforcement agencies release all information regarding Joshua’s disappearance and that St. John’s immediately release the names of all personnel who have had credible assault allegations made against them.
Following the march, participants are invited to attend a low-cost 3 p.m. meal at the Moose Lodge in Waite Park. A prayer service for Joshua has been set for 6 p.m. at Holy Cross Lutheran Church in Maple Lake.
Maple Lake Messenger
‘Justice for Josh’ rally, prayer service set for Nov. 7
