Widespread weekend search organized for missing airman with North Carolina ties
FAYETTEVILLE (WTVD) -- This weekend, a new search effort for a missing airman is being launched by loved ones, including his mother who lives in Hope Mills.
Senior Airman Keifer Huhman, 21, was reported missing this week after he failed to show up for duty at his Dover Air Force Base unit on Monday.
Earlier in the week, the Air Force enlisted the help of Delaware State Police and the Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Control to conduct air and water searches. The agencies were able to located Huhman's truck off the shoulder of the William V. Roth, Jr. Bridge along the C&D Canal in Kent County, Delaware. The discovery was made several hours after he was last seen Sunday night. The young airman had plans to be at a Super Bowl party, but never made it.
This weekend, the airman's parents are behind another organized search of the area.
Huhman's mother, stepfather, and two siblings reside in Cumberland County. While Darlene Norman is in Delaware participating in the search, her husband Starsky Norman is handling the home front in Hope Mills.
"It would be a surprise (to me) for him to do anything to hurt himself," said Norman. "Any type of speculation is just that - speculation. I'm the type of cat that deals with facts."
Norman echoed his wife's sentiments about their son, saying he is passionate about serving his country.
"You have some people who have to go in to the military, and some people who want to be in the military," Norman said. "He wants to be in the military."
Huhman, who attended Liberty Christian and Massey Hill schools in Fayetteville, is described by family members as brilliant, having scored highly on his military competency tests. They said he idolizes his father, a decorated airman stationed in Japan who is a two-time Bronze Star recipient. Kenneth Huhman arrived in Delaware from Okinawa this week to search for his son.
"We're prepared to sacrifice until he's found," said Starsky Norman, who said his family's faith is strong despite what may be a lengthy search. "We're going to keep on pushing and we'll never stop that."
Donations are going to the family for search efforts through the following authorized fundraising site: https://www.youcaring.com/the-huhman-family-520142.
Information on the case, as well as an outpouring of support is being shared on social media using the hashtag #BringKeiferHome.
If you have any information on this case, please call the Dover Police Department at (302) 736-7130, or call your local law enforcement agency.
