The Lost

Kirsa Jensen


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Paloma Migone digs into the cold cases of those who never came home. In episode one, Robyn Jensen says she'll never give up hope of finding her daughter, Kirsa.

Watch a video segment from the episode here

Time is running out for Robyn Jensen.

The 72 year-old hasn't seen her daughter, Kirsa, in more than 34 years.

Kirsa was 14 when she went missing while riding her horse, Commodore, along a Napier beach on the first day of spring in 1983. The terrible story gripped the country for weeks, months, years. Teenage girls weren't meant to just disappear in broad daylight. Not here. Not like this. Yet while the mystery remains unsolved, Robyn's questions just remain. What happened to Kirsa, the animal-loving teenage girl who would be 49 next month?

Despite the passage of time, Robyn's determination to find her daughter hasn't faded - it's only become more urgent. Rather than time being a healer, it's opening a new wound as the fear grows her own life could end before she's able to put Kirsa to rest.

"She's my daughter. She is just so very precious to me and the longer it goes, the harder it is because one day I may be dead and she may not be found.

"To be able to locate her and put her in a decent place, to rest forever, is vitally important to me."

Robyn has spoken with RNZ as part of a new podcast, The Lost, which looks into some of the country's missing persons cases.

"There is a whole new generation of people who don't know or haven't heard or know that there was a girl in Napier that something happened to," she says.

Robyn describes her daughter Kirsa as a serious and dedicated child, who adored animals and dreamed of being a vet and a rider for the New Zealand equestrian team.

"When I think of her, I think curls and bubbles and laughter and responsibility," she says. "Generous and kind and putting others first, but so dedicated to what she wanted to do. She would have done anything for an animal."

Before her disappearance, the family was living in Napier, as Kirsa's father, Dan, was the Anglican minister at St Augustine's Church. Kirsa had been volunteering at a local vet clinic and training Commodore for the upcoming Hawke's Bay Royal A&P Show during the school holidays.

On September 1, 1983, she had planned to go riding with her friend. Rain had stopped her from getting Commodore some exercise, but the sun was out that day. Her friend cancelled but Kirsa was still keen to go to the beach. She got Commodore ready, and said good-bye to her mother about 2.45pm.

At 5pm, Robyn began to feel anxious…

Go to this episode on rnz.co.nz for more details

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