'Nadia means hope': 5 years later, Edmonton mother continues search for daughter
'Nadia means hope': 5 years later, Edmonton mother continues search for daughter
Salwa Atwi knows somebody knows something.
Thursday marked five years since her daughter, Nadia Atwi, went missing. Still, she's not ready to give up and is asking anyone with any information to come forward and help her family find some closure – one way or another.
"Nadia means hope," Salwa said. "I look at [her] picture and I keep my hope up because she is the reason I am still trying.
"She is the reason I look forward to a brighter day."
Nadia was reported missing on Dec. 8, 2017, after she didn't show up for work at the elementary school where she taught kindergarten. The 32-year-old's car was found in a ditch in Rundle Park later that day, with her cell phone and a single shoe nearby.
In the weeks and months that followed, Nadia's family and friends scoured the city.
Nadia Atwi is seen in this undated photo. A $50,000 reward from Atwi's family was still available in December 2022 for tips leading to the woman's whereabouts. (Nahreman Issa/CTV News Edmonton)
They organized search parties, held vigils, posted flyers and handed out custom window decals with Nadia's picture.
Salwa said the family tried everything they could think of to help the police solve Nadia's case, launching a provincial billboard campaign and putting up a $50,000 reward for tips leading to Nadia.
But nothing yet has come in, she said, and she's not sure what else she can do now besides pray for her daughter and share her story, regardless of how painful doing so can be.
The family of missing woman Nadia Atwi printed off window decals in an effort to generate tips leading to her safe return.
"Does a mother [need] to tell how hard it is when your child goes missing? You don't know if they are alive or – God forbid – dead. It's been very hard," Salwa said during a recent interview with CTV News Edmonton.
"And the hardest thing about it is that you can't grieve in silence. You need public help."
Salwa said she believes the police are doing all they can. They've been supportive of the family, she said, and answered every question she's asked.
But each answer, the mother added, only leads to more questions.
"It's like you're trying to put the puzzles together, but so many pieces are missing."
'I KEEP MY HOPE'
Edmonton Police Service confirmed Nadia's case remains open as a missing persons investigation. The circumstances around her disappearance are concerning, investigators said, but they are staying open to all possibilities and will follow up on any leads or new information that comes in.
Without evidence to suggest Nadia is dead, Salwa said she tries to stay positive. She refuses to give in to speculation or fear.
"I remember the first detective I talked to. He said, 'No bad news is good news,'" Salwa recalled.
"The only fact is that Nadia's still missing," she said.
Things like photos of Nadia or her perfume sometimes make Salwa feel like her daughter is still close by.
A photograph of a young Nadia Atwi is seen here. Salwa Atwi said reminiscing over old photographs is one of the ways she has stayed connected to her daughter Nadia over the five years the woman has been missing. (Nahreman Issa/CTV News Edmonton)
Other times, it feels like her daughter is disappearing all over again.
Every time she hears of another missing person, Salwa thinks of Nadia and the mystery of Dec. 8, 2017. Until she knows where her first-born child is, it's impossible to move forward.
"We love her and we miss her so much, and by trying to keep her story out there – I know someone knows something. Somebody has seen something that morning."
Salwa Atwi looks over old photographs during an interview with CTV News Edmonton in December 2022. She said the pictures are one of the ways she has stayed connected to her daughter Nadia over the five years the woman has been missing. (Nahreman Issa/CTV News Edmonton)
Even if she learns that the worst has happened, she needs to know, Salwa said.
"After five years, there are no words to describe the situation," Salwa said. "We just need closure so we know what to do."
"If she is gone, then I will know she is with God and I will be at peace."
The $50,000 reward is still available for any leads that help find Nadia.
Anyone with information should contact police at 780-423-4567 or dial #377 from a cell phone.
Tips can also be submitted anonymously online at www.p3tips.com/tipform or by calling Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-8477.
A gay man is taking the federal government to court, challenging the constitutionality of a policy restricting sexually active gay and bisexual men from donating to sperm banks in Canada, CTV News has learned.
A Quebec woman said she was very surprised to find her stolen Audi had been used in what’s being described as an “absolutely insane” Ontario mall robbery.
A team of preteen Ukrainian refugees that have been scattered across Europe by war arrived Wednesday in Quebec City, where they'll get the chance to compete in a renowned hockey tournament.
Nearly a year since Russia's invasion of Ukraine, community organizers say there is still work to be done to help the thousands of Ukrainian refugees looking to start a new life in Canada while coping with the hardships they've faced coming here.
After a tiny radioactive capsule went missing in the Australian outback, an expert in Canada says the likelihood of the same happening in this country is unlikely, given our strong regulations governing the handling of radioactive materials.
As Black History Month gets underway, Canada Post has unveiled a new stamp honouring Chloe Cooley, a young Black woman who was known to challenge her enslavement in the late 18th century.
Calgary police are looking for suspects involved in an altercation that lasted for approximately an hour, spanned several communities and ended with a gun being fired.
Tsuut'ina Nation Police Service officials are encouraging any local victims to come forward following the arrest of actor Nathan Lee Chasing Horse in Las Vegas on sex assault charges.
Connor Bedard has arrived in Calgary ahead of what's expected to be a completely full Scotiabank Saddledome when the Calgary Hitmen and Regina Pats square off.
The Saskatchewan Environmental Society (SES) is drawing their line in the sand on the controversial Saskatchewan First Act, calling it “bad news” for the environment, economy, and the province’s energy future.
A new 911 dispatch system in New Brunswick means that now fire departments aren’t getting dispatched to all medical calls leaving residents waiting and first responders in the dark.
More than four months after Hurricane Fiona hit Atlantic Canada, people are still dealing with damaged homes as they wait for help from insurance companies and provincial aid programs.
A Quebec woman said she was very surprised to find her stolen Audi had been used in what’s being described as an “absolutely insane” Ontario mall robbery.
Hundreds of tenants at a midtown Toronto apartment building have been without heat for a week now, and many are worried with the arrival of bitter-cold temperatures.
Canada's new special representative on combating Islamophobia has apologized for words that hurt Quebecers after leaders in that province called for her resignation.
Montreal police say two men are in hospital Wednesday night with stab wounds after an altercation in a home in the city's Mercier-Hochelaga-Maisonneuve borough.
Ottawa ranks 45th out of 62 cities across Canada and the United States in a study on downtown recovery, with activity levels at 51 per cent of pre-pandemic levels.
While crews have resumed operations in an attempt to open the Rideau Canal Skateway for its 53rd season, an NCC spokesperson tells CTV News Ottawa the canal will not open in time for the first weekend of Winterlude on Friday.
A hearing is underway to determine if Udo Haan is not criminally responsible for the death of his wife Edra Haan, who was found in the aftermath of the 2018 house explosion in Kitchener, Ont.
Chief Mark Crowell made a presentation at a council meeting Wednesday justifying the proposed $214 million budget for the Waterloo Regional Police Service (WRPS).
Tsuut'ina Nation Police Service officials are encouraging any local victims to come forward following the arrest of actor Nathan Lee Chasing Horse in Las Vegas on sex assault charges.
The organization regulating medical care and services in Manitoba is apologizing for racism directed towards Indigenous people when accessing health care in the province.
B.C.'s Ministry of Health is continuing its multi-year trend of paying millions more dollars each year to private surgical centres for the delivery of public health care, CTV News has learned.
Changes to the amount of time the public gets to voice their opinion during Surrey City Council meetings has caused controversy among former councillors.
A homicide investigation is underway on Quadra Island, B.C., after a 39-year old woman was found dead in what investigators believe was a targeted killing.
Alberta's former chief medical officer of health has landed a new role in British Columbia. Dr. Deena Hinshaw was named a deputy provincial health officer for B.C. on Wednesday.
Nadia Atwi is seen in this undated photo. A $50,000 reward from Atwi's family was still available in December 2022 for tips leading to the woman's whereabouts. (Nahreman Issa/CTV News Edmonton)
The family of missing woman Nadia Atwi printed off window decals in an effort to generate tips leading to her safe return.
A photograph of a young Nadia Atwi is seen here. Salwa Atwi said reminiscing over old photographs is one of the ways she has stayed connected to her daughter Nadia over the five years the woman has been missing. (Nahreman Issa/CTV News Edmonton)
Salwa Atwi looks over old photographs during an interview with CTV News Edmonton in December 2022. She said the pictures are one of the ways she has stayed connected to her daughter Nadia over the five years the woman has been missing. (Nahreman Issa/CTV News Edmonton)
