ORLANDO, Fla. — For nearly 20 years, one question has followed Central Florida: What happened to 24-year-old Jennifer Kesse?
Her disappearance not only reshaped how missing-person cases are handled in Florida — it forever changed the lives of the family who never stopped searching.
Spectrum News 13 spoke with Jennifer’s parents, Drew and Joyce Kesse, who shared their story in their own words: reflecting on 24 years of good memories shared with her daughter, the pain they have endured following her disappearance and the hope they have that one day answers to what happened to their daughter may come.
What You Need To Know
Jennifer Keese has been missing for 20 years
Her parents, Drew and Joyce Kesse, share their emotional and financial toll of 20 years without answers
A quilt made from Jennifer Keese’s favorite clothes keeps her memory close for her family
New technology and AI are giving the family renewed hope that the case can still be solved
Remembering Jennifer: “It’s like having her with us.”
Inside their home, Joyce and Drew Kesse carefully unfold a handmade quilt stitched together from Jennifer’s favorite shirts and sweaters.
“These clothes are Jen’s. They were her favorite clothes,” Joyce said. “It’s like having Jennifer with us. It’s very comforting. It’s so warm.”
Each piece holds a memory — a holiday, a laugh, a moment frozen in time.
“She’s daddy’s little girl. There’s no two questions about it,” Drew said with a smile.
The couple describes their daughter as driven, joyful and full of life.
“She loved music. Loved dancing. She honestly loved life,” they said. “And she was happy. And she was in love. And she loved her job.”
The painful reality: “Ambiguous loss is hell.”
But those memories sit alongside the weight of nearly two decades of uncertainty. Drew keeps binders filled with business cards, leads and notes — what he calls their “Bible” — documenting every step of the search.
“It has taken everything from us,” he said. “All your money. Most of your friends. Your health. It affects every single part of your life.”
Joyce describes the emotional toll even more bluntly.
“Twenty years has really taken a toll… ambiguous loss is hell,” she said. “I miss your laugh. I miss your hugs… those treasured moments.”
Still, they say walking away has never been an option.
“We had a daughter taken by another human being against her will,” Drew said. “We can’t stop.”
Holding on to hope: “Nobody can take that away.”
Despite the pain, hope remains the driving force.
“We’re trying everything we know to try and bring her home,” Drew said. “She’s completely worth it.”
The family said they are now working with the Florida Department of Law Enforcement and an AI technology company to reexamine surveillance video, photos and thousands of pages of investigative files.
“The hope we get from technology is really the biggest hope we have,” Drew said. “Technology has finally caught up with us.”
For Joyce, hope is simpler and stronger.
“Hope is a very powerful four-letter word,” she said. “Nobody can take it away from you.”
And after 20 years, their message remains clear: “We’re not going to walk away.”
What’s next
The Kesse family said they remain committed to working with investigators and believe advancements in technology could finally generate new leads.
The Florida Department of Law Enforcement sent this statement to Spectrum News 13:
“January 24, 2026, marks the 20-year anniversary since the day Jennifer Kesse was reported missing in Orlando. The Florida Department of Law Enforcement (FDLE) assumed the missing person investigation in 2022. Agents from FDLE’s Cold Case Missing Persons Division have been working diligently on reviewing thousands of documents and following up on new leads that may help find her. The investigation remains active, and FDLE continues to be steadfast in its pursuit of justice in this case.”