All She Ever Wanted - Justice for Stacey Balas

In 1988 Stacey Balas was in an near fatal car crash when her friend backed out of a driveway into the path of an oncoming transfer truck. Stacey's family was informed that she probably would not live through the night, but Stacey proved them all wrong. Stacey would need to rebuild life as she knew it from scratch. Her brain was severly damaged from the accident, leaving her with the capacity of a new born baby. Stacey's recovery was slow but it improved over time.
Stacey, a very independant young woman did not want to depend on the government to keep her up over an accident, and she wanted to work like all other young women her age. Stacey was limited to certain types of work due to the massive head injuries she sustained a few years earlier. There were certain things she was unable to do.
Stacey was working at a Subway sandwich shop in Fairview Park Ohio on the night of November 26, 1996 when something went awry. Stacey was closing the shop that night at around 1 a.m., because she had to return the following day around 11 a.m. Stacey did not come home that night.
The following day Stacey's Nissan Pathfinder was located a few blocks away abandoned in a motel parking lot, but still no sign of Stacey. Authorities checked inside the motel to find that Stacey Balas never entered that area any time near the time of her disappearance. After Stacey's disappearance, her family and friends came to learn that she had been working with a man, who had prior brushes with authorities. His name was Larry Wade. Wade was working at the sandwich shop with Stacey on the night of her disappearance. Larry claimed that Stacey closed the shop and they both left separetly that night.
Several months would pass and still no sign of Stacey, when something disturbing happened. Another young woman was attacked by none other than the man last known to have seen Stacey Balas three months earlier, that being Larry Wade. Wade had attacked the woman and attempted to rape her, but she got away. Charges were filed against Wade for this attack and he was subsequently put in jail. There was still no sign of Stacey Balas.
Authorities would release that Stacey's credit card had been used shortly after her disappearance at a gas station but video camera's did not capture who the person was. Stacey's key to her Pathfinder was found by Larry Wade's wife in his possession, however Wade claimed he didnt know how he got it.

Stacey's disappearance was on one of America's most celebrated holiday weekends, Thanksgiving. A holiday that Stacey's family could never celebrate again normally because of the mystery of what happened to Stacey. It is also believed by those who have worked on Stacey's case, that due to the holiday weekend that the case was not pursued in the manner it should have been.

In early November of 2005, almost nine years after Stacey vanished without a trace, authorities announced that they were charging Larry Wade with Stacey's disappearance and murder, although Stacey has never been found. It is unclear if Stacey's remains will ever be located because Larry Wade is not cooperating with authorities since his indictment. Stacey has had a very hard time at life, and almost lost her life once due to someone else's error. It appears that due to someone else's evilness, Stacey was later taken away. All she ever wanted was to have a normal happy life.
As Thanksgiving arrives tomorrow, I am confident Stacey's family is reliving the pain of that weekend, and they are now facing the upcoming trial of the man who took away sweet innocent Stacey. With the grace of God Stacey's body can be recovered and laid to rest in a proper burial, and there will be justice for stacey Her story is one that aches deep down in my heart. I will be watching as this trial moves forward and praying that this man is made to pay for his crimes. For more information on Stacey's case, visit one of the following links below:

The DoeNetwork Case File
Stacey's Listing on Ohio's Missing
Center to Locate Stacey Balas

This blog entry is dedicated to Carrie Culberson and all other missing people.