Faceless, Voiceless

Prologue by Diana Trepkov I created this book to help show you, the reader, what forensic artist means to me. It is not just about the art. Most importantly, it is about being there for the victims and their families to help bring some justice for all the victims. Forensic art has always challenged my imagination as an artist, and it is important to stay on the scientific side of forensic art. There has never been a case that I was involved in that I didn’t feel a special connection with the victim. I have given everything that I got from within to write this book straight from my heart, and I believe the only way write this is to let it flow and not hold anything back. I would like to take this time to explain why I am writing this book. It is to honor the faceless and voiceless unidentified victims. What you are about to read is almost a decade of my work involving forensic art. I have helped in 120 law enforcement cases to date. It would be impossible to write about all in an in-depth manner so I am choosing a handful for this book. This way, I can bring you along with me as we go through each case. Faceless, Voiceless is a name that was mentioned to me by my mentor Connie Phillipson. Through a conversation we had, she had mentioned the title to me and explained that is what I do—putting a face to a victim by age progressions/facial reconstructions and giving a voice to the victim by writing articles about him or her. I wanted this title to somehow explain this book. Through my work, I was able to meet some of the most sincere, loving people I could ever imagine. I would do anything in my power to ease the pain and suffering of these families; somehow I would develop a strong bond with them that I know will last beyond a lifetime. I am staying as true as possible to all the facts of these cases to the best of my ability and knowledge. I would like to explain how and why I do what I do. It is mainly to stand by the victims and their families, to let them know they are not alone through their darkest times. My deep aspiration would be to help identify as many victims as possible, resulting in some closure for the families. It starts with the search and ends with closure. When I was twelve years old, I lived in Burnaby, British Columbia. It was at that time a young man by the name of Terry Fox had lost his life to cancer. What a remarkable young man he was. I believe was a hero. When I heard Terry Fox passed away, I phoned his mom who lived in Port Coquitlam, British Columbia. I said, “Hi, my name is Diana Trepkov and I live in Burnaby … I am very sorry to hear that your son has died!” Even though I had never met Terry’s mom, I felt I needed to call her. I am now much older. My mom recently mentioned, “Ever since you were a little girl, Diana, you always really cared about people, and when they hurt, you also would hurt.” I believe you cannot be a thorough forensic artist if you haven’t developed a sense of empathy. To care about people is really what life is all about. I cannot be happy when and if people are suffering all around me. However, I can find a sense of peace when the victims’ families can get some answers. Through this career, I have felt a strong sense of gratitude and my heart is rich because of the families that I am so blessed to have crossed paths with. Please read this book in a nice, secluded area preferably in a sunny area. This way the darkest areas of this book can help shine through in a positive way as you see and read about the victims and appreciating who they really were before they were murdered or went missing. I would like to bring you into the same mode as I was in when I worked on these cases. I will try to the best of my knowledge to explain the personality of each victim, the facts of the case, and the scientific procedure I would apply as a certified forensic artist. It is my hope that this book will enrich your world by helping you to understand what really goes on behind the scenes with families of missing and murdered loved ones. It is important for all of us to pull together anytime we hear of a missing child or adult, to help as much as we can when we see someone suffering. As each one of us helps the victims and their families, I believe the world will be a safer and more enjoyable place to live in. Every parent should know where his or her child is—deceased or living. Children deserve that much. At the end of my life, as long as I know that I made a small difference in someone else’s life, there really isn’t any more than I could really wish for. Living is doing what you love to do and I believe that life is too short not to help others. Let’s honor the victims and their families together. This is how I believe we can help the faceless to be seen and the voiceless to be heard. With so many unidentified remains and missing persons, I will forever do my part and that is to help identify these victims. That is my promise. I am here to serve, and there isn’t a greater feeling than that in the world! I would like to end my prologue with a quote because someone else has already said it perfectly. Choose a job you love, and you will never have to work a day in your life. ~Confucius