BROWNING — In Glacier County, the parents of three-year-old Arden "Ardie" Pepion are offering a reward for information that leads to their daughter. She was last seen on April 22nd at about 7 p.m. in the vicinity of Joe Show East Road off of US Highway 89, several miles southeast of Browning.
Arbana and Aaron Pepion told MTN News that donations from a GoFundMe page are funding the search for Ardie, along with a reward for valuable information.
They say their daughter had a big voice and a huge personality. The three-year-old and her two siblings lived with their grandmother, but the couple says they were always in their children's lives.
They're grateful for the amount of support that's come in from around the country and the world. The family is currently relying on trained volunteers and professionals who have aided in recovery efforts after officials scaled back the search.
Arbana says the lack of resources highlights a big problem for other Missing & Murdered Indigenous Persons (MMIP) families who have fought for help.
"It shouldn't have took Arden to shine a light on this reservation, to show exactly what was missing,” she said. “I always knew that she had a big voice, but I didn't think it was gonna be this big."
Blackfeet Tribal Business Council member Mark Pollock says officials had to split up limited resources after 26-year-old Leo Wagner vanished five days later; Wagner has not yet been found.
The couple says Ardie disappeared while in her grandmother's care and that their two other children remain under her watch. MTN News has tried to contact the grandmother, Blackfeet Law Enforcement Services, and Browning Child Protective Services. We have not heard back from any of them yet, and will update you as we learn more.
Click here to visit the "Bring Arden Home" page.
Click here if you would like to donate to the GoFundMe account.
