Search Continues for 13-Year-Old Brother of GCU Enrollment Counselor

By Michael Ferraresi
GCU News Bureau

Nick Redwine hasn’t slept well since hearing the news from his native state.

The GCU enrollment counselor worries that while he’s comfortable at home in Arizona, he is unclear if his younger brother Dylan has access to a pillow or food -- or if he is even safe. As the public casts its doubts, and the Redwine family grapples with their own emotions, they still believe Dylan “is alive and well” since he disappeared from his father's home in a small town in southwestern Colorado.

Dylan Redwine, 13, vanished on Nov. 19 and was reported missing by their father, Mark Redwine. 

Dylan’s Thanksgiving visit to his father was court-appointed, according to investigators. Dylan grew up in the Bayfield area but had moved to Colorado Springs with his mother, Elaine Redwine, in September.

Authorities and volunteers will fan out across the areas around the La Plata County Road 140 in the Vallecito area today in advance of cold, snowy weather that could hide missing keys to the case.

Dylan is a 5-foot-tall eighth-grader. He has blond hair, blue eyes and weighs around 105 pounds. He was last seen in the 2300 block of County Road 500 north of Vallecito Lake near the San Juan National Forest northeast of Durango. Anyone with information about Dylan should contact the La Plata County Dispatch Center at 970.385.2900.

La Plata County Sheriff’s investigators are working with the FBI on Dylan’s disappearance. They have searched Mark Redwine’s house. He is not considered a suspect, and police have not named any suspect.

Nick Redwine, 28, lives in Gilbert with his wife, Ann, and two boys, Maddox, 4, and Nolan, 10 months. He works as an international enrollment counselor at GCU’s Tempe office, primarily helping College of Nursing and Health Care Professions students from around the country. He said his colleagues and supervisors have been supportive of trying to spread the word about getting Dylan home safely.

With the search efforts intensifying, Nick said the most difficult part is the scrutiny involving his estranged father, with whom he had a fragmented childhood.

“I’m trying to find out who my father is as I try to deal with the loss of a brother,” he said.

Nick added that when he was back home to help relatives coordinate the search, media requests and other issues with the case, he noticed how so many people came forward hoping to help his family with donations and prayers.

“It was very eye-opening, just seeing how tight that community has become,” he said.

Dylan’s family is asking for donations from blue-black ribbons in Dylan’s honor to raise money for his search and rescue. The ribbons represent Dylan’s favorite colors, Nick said.

Colorado media organizations also uncovered past instances of alleged assaults and alcohol-related domestic disputes involving Mark and Elaine Redwine. Another report included a dispute with Dylan’s older brother Cory, 21.