Melinda "Mendy" Rice

WILEYVILLE – A weekend search resulted in no leads as to the the whereabouts of 42-year-old Melinda “Mendy” Rice, of Gilmer County.

Melinda Rice was last seen Monday, March 20, walking away from a home on Brock Ridge near Wileyville in Wetzel County.

According to Rice’s family, several individuals searched on Saturday, April 1 for signs of the missing mother of four. The search lasted from about 11 a.m. until sunset that evening. Some individuals searched the Brock Ridge area, while others searched the ridges surrounding Brock Ridge.

The family is planning another search for April 15, followed by a candlelight vigil.

Also, a GoFundMe account is expected to be created, to help raise additional reward money. Right now, the family is offering $1,000 for information leading to Rice’s discovery.

A dinner is also being planned, to offer a place for Rice’s loved ones and supporters to gather.

“Everyone is grieving in their own way,” said a family member of Rice’s, to the Wetzel Chronicle.

According to her family, Rice has a slender build, brown hair and hazel eyes.

She is 5 foot 4 inches tall and weighs 120 to 125 pounds. She has a tattoo of a cross on her left middle finger, a small dagger tattoo, and a tattoo that says “I Love Freddie” on her right ankle.

When she was last seen, Rice was wearing a dark colored West Virginia hooded sweatshirt, a pair of jeans and white tennis shoes.

Rice’s family has searched for her, or signs of her whereabouts, since her disappearance. The family said they found an article of clothing along the road in the area where she was last seen. The item was taken to the state police.

The state police has also taken search dogs to the area where Rice was last seen.

The family said if Rice can see the news reports, they want herr to know that they are really worried, “and she needs to contact somebody.”

“This is not like her,” a family member has said of Rice.

Anyone with information about Rice is asked to contact law enforcement.