HUSLIA, ALASKA: Willis Derendoff, 34, a talented musician from Huslia, Alaska, disappeared without a trace in Fairbanks, Alaska, on November 10, 2020.
His family has been looking for him for three years, but they have not found any clues or leads to his whereabouts.
They are still hoping to find him and bring him home or at least get some closure on what happened to him.
Willis Derendoff was 34 years old when he went missing in Fairbanks
Willis was last seen on November 10, 2020 at the Extended Stay America hotel near Airport Road in Fairbanks, where he had checked in a few days earlier.
He had just finished his seasonal work at a mine near Huslia and was planning to take a Covid-19 test, get a new phone, and replace his lost ID and debit card before returning home.
His mother, Gladys, told Dateline that she spoke to him on the phone the day before he disappeared and he said he was feeling sick.
“He told me he didn’t feel good,” she said, adding “But we just really want to bring some closure and bring him home.”
Willis Derendoff's couldn't access his hotel room
His sister Josephine said she and their father also happened to be in Fairbanks at that time, but they were not able to see him.
They stopped by the hotel on the morning of November 9 to ask when he was coming back to Huslia, but they could not access his room.
“[The hotel staff] said he was there just that morning,” she said, adding “So me and my dad went home that day back to Huslia.”
When they could not reach him the next day, they reported him missing to the police.
Gladys traveled from Huslia to Fairbanks and stayed there for eight months, organizing search parties almost every day with the help of friends, family, and community members from both places.
She said they received donations from various sources to fund their lodging, car rentals, and gas cards.
They also hired a private investigator for six months, but none of their efforts yielded any significant clues or leads.
Willis Derendoff's father died 'heartbroken' waiting for his son
Willis’s father also searched for him tirelessly until he was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer and died on December 2, 2021.
“He was just very, very heartbroken,” Gladys said, adding “He was looking for [Willis] right until he passed away.”
For the family, the sense of closure is important. “In our Native way, we let [loved ones] go,” Gladys told Dateline.
“We stop crying for them all the time. Because if we keep crying and, you know, being sad — in our Native way, we make them sad, you know? So that’s how we’re getting by," she added.
Willis Derendoff's family described him as a natural-born musician
Willis’s family described him as a natural-born musician who learned to play the guitar by himself at only five years old.
“Pretty much, any kind of instrument… he would be able to figure out,” his sister Dolly said.
They said he was also a kind, generous, and funny person who loved his family and his culture.
Willis Derendoff 's family wants to have closure and bring him home
On the third anniversary of his disappearance, his family continues to hope for movement in his case.
“We wanna find out who did this and bring them to justice,” his sister Vanessa said.
They are offering a $12,000 reward for information that helps solve Willis’s case.
The family runs a Facebook page called 'Searching for Willis Derendoff,' that has over 2,000 members who often post pictures of their tea in remembrance of Willis.
“When he was with us, he used to drink tea all the time. And so now we have ‘Tea for Willis,’” Josephine told Dateline.
“So people — his family and friends — always post on Facebook: ‘Tea for Willis,’ so we won’t forget him," Josephine added.
Four more people disappeared from the area at the same time.
