The family of Amy Hillyard, the beloved coffee shop owner who disappeared in Oakland last month, announced on Monday a $10,000 reward for any information that leads to her safe return.
“We truly believe someone out there has seen Amy, may know where she is, or has information that could help bring her home,” her husband, Chris Hillyard said in a statement. “Despite the tireless efforts of hundreds of volunteers over the past two weeks, we are still searching for answers. The Oakland Police Department (OPD) continues to follow up on leads, and we hope this reward encourages anyone with information to come forward.”
The Hillyard’s co-own Farley’s Coffee, which includes locations in Oakland and San Francisco. Active in community service roles, including as current board president of the Piedmont East Bay Children’s Choir, Amy Hillyard’s March 25 disappearance shocked the Bay Area and has led to vast searches.
Police said there was no evidence of foul play or a crime.
Chris Hillyard told the Chronicle last week that his wife had dealt with recent loss and sadness related to the deaths of a close family friend and one of the family’s dogs, as well as intensive caregiving of close relatives. She was prescribed medication for depression and anxiety, he said, adding that she was “working on recovering and doing all the right things to heal” when she vanished.
“There’s no real explanation for why she has gone missing,” he told the Chronicle. “She did not leave a note behind or any other clues.”
The day she disappeared, he and his wife had breakfast together at home before she went to a therapy appointment in Walnut Creek, he said. Credit card charges showed charges for BART trips to and from Walnut Creek.
After she returned home around 1:40 p.m., she walked their dog. On her way back, she talked to a neighbor, he said, citing surveillance footage from a neighboring home.
He said he returned home around 3:15 p.m. to find her car keys, cellphone, wallet and handbag on the kitchen counter.
Family and friends of Amy Hillyard gathered at the Pergola at Lake Merritt for a candlelight vigil in support of the missing woman in Oakland, Calilf., on Sunday, March 29, 2026. Hillyard has been missing since Wednesday when she was last seen walking her dog. (Carlos Avila Gonzalez/S.F. Chronicle)
Around 4:30 p.m. surveillance video captured her in the area of Dimond Park, located at the base of Dimond Canyon and hiking trails, police said. The park is about two miles from their Radnor Road home in Oakland’s Cleveland Heights neighborhood, near Lake Merritt.
Volunteers, including family and friends, have searched spots she frequented, including trails near the Oakland hills.
Amy is 5 feet, 4 inches tall and weighs 120 pounds, with blond hair and hazel eyes. Police and the family asked anyone with information to call OPD’s Missing Persons Unit at 510-238-3641.
This article originally published at $10,000 reward offered by family of missing Oakland coffee shop owner.