Marcus Rigby, from Cartmel, near Lancaster, disappeared in April 1995 at the age of 27 after telling his family he was ‘going away’ and ‘would phone in a week’.
Despite his family making numerous appeals, including appearing on programmes such as the BBC’s Missing and Why Do Bad Things Happen To Good People?, he has never since made contact with his loved ones.
His mother, Mary Ratcliff, has not given up hope of finding her son and still buys him birthday and Christmas presents.
The 73-year-old has travelled up and down the British Isles following leads after reported sightings, and is now appealing to Islanders for help.
The family lived in Jersey for a short time when Mr Rigby was young, and Mrs Ratcliff worked as a nurse at the Hospital. She thinks her son might have travelled back to the Channel Islands.
‘He would have very happy memories and it’s possible that searching for a fresh start might have led him there,’ she said.
Somebody phoned Mrs Ratcliff a few years ago and said they thought they knew her son but that he had changed his name to Mark Smith.
‘I’ve been all over the place, but never had any luck. Every year I buy presents on his birthday and Christmas.
‘I’m a Christian, so I pray for him all the time.
‘He [God] has spoken to me in many different ways and I trust him for Marc’s wellness and safety. I just think he was not in a very good place.
‘I still believe deep inside that he is still out there in the world,’ she said. When Mr Rigby vanished he left behind his son, who was aged six at the time.
Since he disappeared his younger sister, Lucy, died in a road traffic collision in 2001 when she was 14.
‘We never had an argument and he knew we had a loving relationship,’ said Mrs Ratcliff.
‘He stayed with my sister for two nights and then hitched down to Weymouth.
‘He said he would ring but we never heard from him.
‘I will never give up and I want him to know there is a place for him here whenever he wants it – we are longing to see him again.’
Islanders with any information are asked to contact the family via the Facebook page Looking For Marcus Rigby.
