Papi Killed Mommy

CONTENT WARNING: This episode discusses homicide, domestic violence, childhood trauma, and contains strong language.

What happens when one advocacy conference changes the direction of a 33-year fight for justice?

In Episode 22, I return from AdvocacyCon with new connections, new opportunities, and one idea I cannot let go of: placing my mother's face on a billboard near the Phoenix neighborhood where Russell Bennett Peterson lives.

A month ago, I did not believe I could afford to attend. Then a scholarship, an extraordinary supporter named Lori, my mother's longtime friend Swifty, a tiny celebrity named Dickie Birdie, and an entire community came together to get me there.

I returned with potential new media coverage, a consultation with a husband-and-wife investigative team, interest from Patrick Hinds and investigative journalist Stephanie Tinsley—and a renewed determination to ensure Stacy Marie Wasilishin is never forgotten.

I also learned that Russell—now calling himself "Rusty" on Facebook—may be listening to this podcast and watching my content.

So naturally, I welcomed him personally.

The independent documentarian working on Mom's case would still like a comment from him. I would still love to sit across from him and have a recorded conversation. After 33 years, he has certainly had enough time to prepare.

Russell Bennett Peterson has never been charged or convicted in connection with Stacy's homicide and is presumed innocent unless proven guilty in a court of law.

In this episode, I share an emotional update about reconnecting with my younger sister, announce the first case I plan to cover in Season Two, and explain how a stranger's flyer introduced me to Dorothy Miller—an Iowa grandmother whose 1969 murder remains Burlington's oldest cold case.

Then there is the telephone directory.

The Library of Congress located a 1993 Phoenix telephone directory on microfilm and agreed to search it for the number called approximately four minutes before Russell called 911. Unredacted case information identified that number as belonging to Russell's father, Ken Peterson.

A historical listing would not reveal who answered or what was said—but it could document who held that telephone number when my mother was killed.

It is one more piece of work that should have been completed in 1993.

Finding the phone book no one found.

Asking the questions no one asked.

Following the evidence others abandoned.

And putting the billboard where the right person might finally see it.

WATCH THE ALBUQUERQUE NEWS COVERAGE:

A local Albuquerque news crew came to AdvocacyCon intending to cover New Mexico families. I shamelessly pitched Mom's case anyway—and they came back. Stacy's face and Papi Killed Mommy reached an entirely new audience:

https://youtu.be/qofQKUFN6xo?is=A7dc7a6aq6crcJlF

HELP PUT STACY'S FACE ON A BILLBOARD:

Support the billboard campaign:

https://gofund.me/439db13dd

My goal is to place Stacy's face, name, and tip line near 19th Avenue and Bethany Home Road in Phoenix—where Russell, his family, friends, neighbors, or someone with information may see it.

CONFIDENTIAL FAMILY TIP LINE:

Call or text: 602-888-6399

This independently operated tip line is not affiliated with law enforcement. Please preserve any original messages, photographs, recordings, or documents. You may also contact the Sedona Police Department directly.

#928-203-5002

SUBMIT STACY'S CASE TO CRIME JUNKIE:

We still have not received an answer from Crime Junkie. If you have three minutes, please submit the homicide of Stephanie "Stacy" Marie Wasilishin:

https://suggest.audiochuckcases.com/

CONTACT MORBID:

Ash and Alaina have already helped Papi Killed Mommy reach thousands of new listeners and chart on Apple Podcasts. Please respectfully ask whether they can share or support Stacy's billboard campaign:

[email protected]

Please keep every message courteous, concise, and focused on Stacy, her case, and the billboard.

Questions, sponsorships, billboard connections, or media inquiries:

[email protected]

Thirty-three years later, Stacy's daughters are still here.

We are still asking. We are still investigating. We are still fighting.

And we are not going away.

EPISODE 21: SOMEBODY KNOWS SOMETHING

At 1:36 a.m. on July 9, 1993, a one-minute telephone call was placed from our Sedona home—just minutes before Russell Peterson called 911 while my mother, Stacy Marie Wasilishin, lay dying.

Where did that call go? Who answered? What was said? And why wasn't it investigated when the evidence and memories were still fresh?

The itemized telephone bill shows that the call went to a Glendale number ending in 7991. My grandmother's original, unredacted 1993 case file lists that exact same number as the home telephone number of Russell's father, Kenneth Peterson.

Exact number. Exact match.

But the current case file redacts the telephone numbers, and I have found no report documenting that investigators interviewed the recipient or established what was said during that critical one-minute call.

The Sedona Police Department did not obtain the telephone bill directly from U.S. West. They waited approximately 96 days for Russell to bring in the evidence himself. The call was not meaningfully revisited until 2025—32 years after my mother's homicide—when a modern database produced conflicting information and the people involved were asked to remember a one-minute call from more than three decades earlier.

That conflict does not erase what the original police file says. It makes finding the actual 1993 directory even more important.

In this episode, I place the records side by side, explain what they prove—and what they do not prove—and break down the questions investigators should have asked in 1993.

I am asking for the public's help locating an original 1993 Phoenix/Glendale residential White Pages directory. Not the Yellow Pages. Not another modern reverse-number search. I need the physical directory or a verifiable archival copy that can establish exactly how this number and Kenneth Peterson were listed in 1993.

A QUICK NOTE: I have already contacted the Phoenix Public Library, the Arizona State Library, Archives and Public Records, and the Library of Congress—but I am grateful for every suggestion and lead.

If you work for a library, archive, historical society, university, genealogy organization, or simply know someone who might have saved an old phone book, please help me locate a 1993 Phoenix/Glendale residential White Pages directory.

If you have any information or another place you think I should contact, please email me at [email protected].

Somebody out there may have exactly what I need. Please help me find it.

If you have access to one, Send clear photographs of the cover, publication year, directory area, and relevant listing pages. Please do not post addresses or private telephone information publicly.

I also welcome Sarah Lambert, author of the Crime Scene Investigator (CSI) Field Guide, as a sponsor. Sarah is independently reviewing my mother's case and raising important questions about the crime scene, timeline, evidence handling, blood samples, weapon, and an unidentified purse found inside the home.

Learn more or purchase the CSI Field Guide:

Crime Scene Investigator (CSI) Field Guide: Lambert, Sarah: 9781032822891: Amazon.com: Books

Dateline has now confirmed coverage of my mother's homicide, and I will soon sit down for an on-camera interview. As more experts, journalists, advocates, and listeners examine this case, the circle of people who may know something is beginning to feel the pressure.

My sister believes her father will never confess—not even on his deathbed—and that only she could obtain a confrontation call or confession.

I beg to differ.

My sister is not the only door. Witnesses are doors. Evidence is a door. This 1:36 a.m. call is a door. National attention is a door. Somebody else's conscience may be the door that finally opens.

If you have information about Stacy's death, do not confront anyone yourself. Contact:

Sedona Police Department non-emergency line: 928-282-3100 https://www.sedonaaz.gov/departments/police

Yavapai County Attorney's Office: 928-771-3344 https://www.yavapaiaz.gov/County-Attorney

Somebody knows something.

I am not going to stop until we reach the person who does.

CONTENT WARNING: This episode discusses homicide, possible evidence mishandling, domestic violence, childhood trauma, and contains strong language.

EPISODE 20: EXPLOITED? THIS IS MY STORY TOO.

CONTENT WARNING:

This episode discusses homicide, domestic violence, childhood trauma, family estrangement, and contains strong language.

Where does advocacy end—and exploitation begin?

After six years of silence, I finally received a message from my younger sister. But it wasn't the reunion I had hoped for. She told me she was afraid that anything and everything between us would be "exploited for more views and followers."

That accusation cut deep.

In this episode, I respond—not to shame my sister or expose the private details of her present-day life, but because I need to confront an impossible question: How do I tell the truth about our shared childhood trauma without telling part of her story?

Thirty-three years ago, two little girls lost their mother.

I was ten. My sister was three. We sat beside each other in the back of a Sedona Police Department vehicle while my little sister repeatedly tried to tell the adults around us what she had witnessed:

"Papi killed Mommy."

Her voice can be heard on the 911 recording. Her words appear throughout the police reports. Her role in that night cannot be erased from the evidence—but neither can mine.

This is her story, but it is also my story. Mom was her mother, and she was my mother too.

There is a difference between discussing the documented events surrounding my mother Stacy Marie Wasilishin's homicide and exposing every private detail of my sister's life today. I can respect that boundary. I can leave the door open for her to speak someday, in her own words and on her own terms.

But I will not stop telling our mother's story.

I can not erase my sister from my memories. I can not erase her voice from the 911 call. I will not ignore what she reportedly told police because those words may be among the most important pieces of evidence in our mother's case.

And I will not erase myself from this story either.

Since Episode 19, my mother's case has reached places I once could only dream about. Senator Mark Kelly's office has formally received my request for assistance and is reviewing the case. Crime Junkie requested access to the case materials I assembled. Joseph Scott Morgan followed me and may examine the forensic evidence for Body Bags. An independent journalist is producing an Arizona Unsolved mini-documentary about Mom's case.

My podcast crossed approximately 300,000 downloads and entered the Apple Podcasts charts for a fourth time.

And I have an interview scheduled with Dateline Digital.

I am also officially taking my mother's story to AdvocacyCon in Albuquerque, New Mexico. Thanks to several extraordinary people who believed in what I am doing, Mom will have her own booth—her face, her case, and her name placed in front of investigators, journalists, legal professionals, victim advocates, content creators, and families fighting battles of their own.

In this episode, I also pull back the curtain on what advocacy really costs: the unanswered emails, stalled media pitches, false hope, personal expenses, exhaustion, and the emotional toll of repeatedly asking strangers to care about the worst night of my life.

I am a preschool teacher. I am an independent podcaster. I am the daughter of a murdered woman. I do not have a television network, production company, podcast network, or public-relations department funding this fight.

It is me behind this microphone.

It is me writing the emails, organizing the evidence, contacting the media, filling out submission forms, recording the episodes, editing the audio, and continuing to say my mother's name.

This episode includes breakthroughs, disappointments, two new sponsors, a painful confrontation with my father, and one promise holding everything together:

I did not sacrifice my privacy so I could steal my sister's.

I did it because silence was protecting everybody except Mom.

This is not exploitation.

This is advocacy.

This is a daughter refusing to let her murdered mother be forgotten.

And this is my story too.

HELP ME KEEP MOM'S CASE MOVING:

Submit Stacy Marie Wasilishin's case to Crime Junkie: Suggest a Case

Submit Mom's case to Dateline: Have a story to share with Dateline? Submit it here.

Contact AZFamily Investigates: Contact Investigations

Email ABC15 and ask its reporters to investigate the homicide of Stacy Marie Wasilishin:

[email protected]

Email 12News/KPNX and ask the newsroom to investigate the homicide of Stacy Marie Wasilishin:

[email protected]

Email Phoenix New Times and ask its newsroom to investigate the homicide of Stacy Marie Wasilishin:

[email protected]

Email The Arizona Republic/azcentral and ask its newsroom to investigate the homicide of Stacy Marie Wasilishin:

[email protected]

You can also submit an investigative tip here:

https://static.azcentral.com/watchdog-tips/

Learn more about AdvocacyCon: AdvocacyCon 2026 | Crime Advocacy Conference, Albuquerque NM

BECOME A PAPI KILLED MOMMY INSIDER:

Subscribe through Apple Podcasts for exclusive episodes, personal updates, and unheard material, A seven-day free trial is available.

https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/papi-killed-mommy/id1820673703

BUY ME A COFFEE—or, realistically, a sugar-free Red Bull:

If you'd like to fuel the late-night recording, research, editing, and advocacy behind Papi Killed Mommy, you can support me here:

https://cash.app/$NicoleWasilishin

Every little bit helps me keep the microphone on and keep saying my mother's name.

SPONSOR PAPI KILLED MOMMY:

If you are interested in sponsoring the podcast or helping me build my independent media company, email me:

[email protected]

Every listen, rating, review, share, case submission, and conversation helps put my mother's name—and the evidence in her case—in front of someone new.

If the courtroom won't, the public will.

Be my mother's grand jury.

What exactly is Papi Killed Mommy Insider—and what do YOU want to hear?

In this bonus episode, I'm introducing my brand-new Apple Podcasts subscription and revealing the three subscriber-only pieces already waiting for you:

• The original Episode 1 that Sarah Turney told me to rewrite and re-record • The cleaned-up audio from my very first video about my mother's case • The original Papi Killed Mommy trailer that I created—and then rejected

But the archives are only the beginning.

I want Insider to become a place for behind-the-scenes stories, previously unreleased material, Q&A episodes, true-crime discussions, animal-welfare rabbit holes, controversial topics, and anything else you want me to research or talk about.

Do you want me to discuss another true-crime case? Ive struggled with this, but I'll really try to talk other cases if that's what you want to hear...

Do you want to talk about animal welfare? Let's do it.

Do you have a topic you want to debate? Bring it on.

Do you want a Q&A episode? Ask me anything.

I also preview an upcoming Insider episode with the completely ridiculous—but entirely accurate—title:

"Mary Poppins, Murdered Women & Why We Don't Boil Crabs Alive."

Yes, cyberbullying, murdered women, animal sentience, and the humane treatment of crabs somehow belong in the same episode. You'll have to trust me.

Most importantly, the regular Papi Killed Mommy podcast is not going behind a paywall. My mother's story, case developments, evidence, and continuing fight for justice will remain available to everyone.

Insider is simply extra.

It's archival material. It's behind-the-scenes material. It's experimental episodes. It's Q&As. It's new topics that you ask me to explore. It's a way for the people who want more to get more while directly supporting what I'm trying to build.

I currently have my first three subscribers, and I cannot thank you enough for taking a chance on this with me.

A subscription costs $4.99 per month. After Apple's commission, approximately $3.50 from each subscription comes to me. That means reaching 29 subscribers would generate roughly $100 per month before taxes.

Twenty-nine people. That's my first goal.

Maybe six months from now, we'll have 60 subscribers—and this little experiment will bring in an extra $200 every month. You have no idea how much that would help me continue researching, writing, recording, editing, advocating, and building these shows.

Between Papi Killed Mommy and my charting children's podcast, Nanny Nikki's Imagination Station, I may have accidentally taken on a third show.

Apparently, my current business model is murder and preschool adventures.

Honestly, if you know me, that tracks.

I'm also looking for sponsors for both podcasts. If you own a business, work for one, or know someone whose company might fit either my adult true-crime audience or the families listening to Nanny Nikki's Imagination Station, please reach out.

I offer personalized, host-read sponsorships that can be tailored to your business and whichever audience makes the most sense. I'm especially interested in connecting with businesses in Cave Creek, Carefree, North Scottsdale, and the surrounding Arizona communities.

Maybe five years from now, we'll revisit this episode and laugh about the time I cold-pitched 35 businesses, couldn't land my first sponsor, and had absolutely no idea how to build a media company.

But a year ago, I didn't know how to build a podcast either—and, now I have two charting shows.

So, I'm pressing the next button.

What would make you subscribe? What should I pull from the archives? What have you always wanted to ask me? Which cases, debates, or completely random subjects should I explore?

The sky's the limit. Bring it on.

🎧 Become a Papi Killed Mommy Insider: Listen and subscribe on Apple Podcasts

🚂 Listen to Nanny Nikki's Imagination Station: Listen on Spotify Listen on Apple Podcasts

💵 Buy Nikki a sugar-free Red Bull: Cash App: $NicoleWasilishin

💼 Sponsorship inquiries, questions, and episode suggestions: [email protected]

Thank you for supporting my work—and for continuing to say my mother's name:

Stephanie "Stacy" Marie Wasilishin.

How do I turn two charting podcasts, more than 332,000 downloads, and hundreds of thousands of social-media followers into an actual paycheck?

I have built the audience. I have built the studio. I have created two Apple-charting podcasts.

I am also the person behind the computer doing nearly everything.

I research. I write. I record. I edit. I publish. I create the artwork. I promote the episodes. I answer messages and comments. I contact journalists. I pitch businesses. I study the analytics. I manage the social-media accounts.

This has become a second full-time job—one that currently provides me with practically no meaningful income.

In this deeply personal bonus episode, I talk about the emotional fight with my dad that forced me to confront that reality. Papi Killed Mommy has become a recognized true-crime and advocacy platform, but I still haven't figured out how to turn everything I have built into a sustainable business.

This is not a woe-is-me episode.

I am not asking anyone to rescue me. I am genuinely asking for information, connections, sponsorship opportunities, brand partnerships, publishing guidance, and help connecting the dots. Hell maybe a manager??? Any takers?

After my breakdown, I created a four-page professional media kit and cold-pitched approximately 35 local Cave Creek and Arizona businesses.

By the time I recorded this episode, the score was:

35 pitches sent. TWO no. I got a second no after recording. Very sad. One maybe. Thirty-two possibilities still open.

My immediate goal is to generate approximately $1,000 to $1,500 a month from my podcasts, original stories, sponsorships, memberships, and social-media platforms.

That would allow me to reduce my school schedule to approximately 20 hours a week—and dedicate another 20 hours each week to working in my studio.

Maybe, five years from now, I could eventually make this my primary career.

The thought of completely walking away from my school breaks my heart because Nanny Nikki's Imagination Station is fed by the children, creativity, stories, and experiences I encounter as a Pre-K teacher. I don't want to lose that part of myself.

But part-time?

Part-time would give me the balance I desperately need.

Twenty hours with the children. Twenty hours building the business. Twenty hours creating something that could eventually support me.

HELP ME UNLOCK SPOTIFY SUBSCRIPTIONS

At the time I recorded this episode, Nanny Nikki's Imagination Station was only 76 Spotify followers away from unlocking the ability to offer paid subscriptions and exclusive bonus content.

Following is completely free. You are not being asked to purchase a subscription.

If you use Spotify, please follow Nanny Nikki's Imagination Station here:

https://open.spotify.com/show/5ooZH22U6cBeohp7UwARnL?si=039742abb91146d8

NANNY NIKKI'S IMAGINATION STATION

I don't want to put all my eggs into the Papi Killed Mommy basket.

Papi Killed Mommy is my advocacy and my fight for justice. Nanny Nikki's Imagination Station is where I can build something from my own imagination.

I have written five original children's stories, including The Hidden Library and The Lost Mapmaker. The next installment will be The Door Beyond the Library.

My goal is to develop these connected adventures into complete books, continuing series, community readings, museum programming, educational events, and original bonus content for children and families.

I don't want to profit from the worst thing that ever happened to my family.

I want to earn money from my own writing, my own voice, my own imagination, and the platform I worked so hard to create.

SPONSORSHIPS, BRAND DEALS AND BUSINESS CONNECTIONS

Are you a business owner, marketing professional, podcast advertiser, brand representative, publisher, sponsorship specialist, or someone who understands how to turn an audience into a sustainable business?

I want to hear from you.

To discuss host-read advertising, social-media promotion, cross-podcast campaigns, publishing opportunities, brand partnerships, or to request my complete four-page media kit, email:

[email protected]

BUY ME A COFFEE—OR A SUGAR-FREE RED BULL

If either podcast has meant something to you and you would like to support my work while I build a permanent membership program, you can buy me a coffee through Cash App.

Although, in all reality, my favorite form of caffeine in the summmer in AZ is a sugar-free Red Bull. If you want to send me a case of those, I definitely will not say no.

Cash App: $NicoleWasilishin https://cash.app/$NicoleWasilishin

FOLLOW ME ON TIKTOK

https://www.tiktok.com/@papikilledmommy

I built the platform.

I built the audience.

I proved that people will listen.

Now I need to learn how to build the business.

Can YOU Help? At this point I think I need a manager...Anyone? Bueller? Bueller? Bueller?

*]:pointer-events-auto R6Vx5W_threadScrollVars scroll-mb-[calc(var(--scroll-root-safe-area-inset-bottom,0px)+var(--thread-response-height))] scroll-mt-[calc(var(--header-height)+min(200px,max(70px,20svh)))]" dir="auto" data-turn-id= "request-6a53f690-8ed0-83e8-9b28-4bf64d8e092b-4" data-turn-id-container= "request-6a53f690-8ed0-83e8-9b28-4bf64d8e092b-4" data-testid= "conversation-turn-96" data-turn="assistant"> Three Weeks That Changed Everything

I have never wanted to write show notes like these.

I have spent the last year asking people to listen to Papi Killed Mommy because I need them to hear my mother's story. I've asked you to share it. I've asked you to rate it. I've asked you to help me keep Stacy's name alive.

But today, for the first time, I'm asking you to help me.

The last three weeks have brought me to my knees.

Two days before my 44th birthday, I increased my GLP-1 dose—and within hours, my body basically declared war on me. What followed was roughly ten days of relentless nausea and vomiting, dehydration, two emergency visits from an RN to my home, more than $500 in medical expenses, and the discovery of something I barely knew existed: cannabinoid hyperemesis syndrome, or CHS.

After more than 20 years of regular cannabis use, I stopped immediately.

Then came the sweating. The chills. The brain fog. The sleeplessness. The stomach problems. The emotional roller coaster. I was trying to recover from being incredibly sick while my body was simultaneously adjusting to life without something that had been part of it for more than two decades.

And somehow, I made it through.

I'm eating again.

I'm working again.

I'm functioning again.

I'm cannabis-free.

I'm still here.

But getting physically better didn't undo what being sick did to my life.

I'm a Pre-K teacher. I make $16.50 an hour. I love my job more than I can explain, but I live paycheck to paycheck. Despite having two podcasts, viral videos, hundreds of thousands of downloads and a growing social-media following, podcasting does not pay my bills. Papi Killed Mommy generally brings in only about $60–$100 a month, and I don't monetize Nanny Nikki's Imagination Station at all.

And today, I learned that because of a school policy, I'm losing an entire week's pay.

Forty-five hours.

I want to explain this carefully because I don't want anyone attacking my employer on my behalf. I want people to understand how this happened.

Our school has a policy that in order to be paid for a school break, employees must work the scheduled workday immediately before the break and the scheduled workday immediately after it.

I understand that there is a policy.

What is so painful to me is why I wasn't there.

I wasn't taking an extra vacation day. I wasn't extending my break. I wasn't simply deciding I didn't feel like going to work.

I was sick.

I had a doctor's note for the Monday I missed.

And then there was a roughly two-hour Meet the Teacher event while I was still sick. I personally called my boss that day and explained what was happening and that I wasn't well enough to attend.

At no point during that conversation did I understand that missing that event could mean losing an entire week's paycheck.

Had I known, I would have dragged myself there.

I don't care how nauseated I was. I don't care what I looked like. I would have sat in a corner with a bottle of water for two hours if I had understood that the alternative was losing $742.50.

Because I literally cannot afford to lose $742.50.

And this is important to me, too: this is my third year in the classroom.

I'm not a brand-new teacher walking into Meet the Teacher to introduce myself to a community that has never met me. My returning families know me. My school knows me. They know how seriously I take my classroom, how much I love my students, and how much this job means to me.

I've also been sick around a school break before and was still paid, which is another reason I didn't understand that this time would be different.

When I asked about the missing pay, the explanation I received was that it's policy, I don't have PTO, and essentially, "don't be mad at me."

Again, I'm not asking anyone to attack my employer. Please don't.

Maybe this policy is being applied exactly as it is written.

But I would be lying if I said this doesn't hurt.

It's incredibly difficult to reconcile having a legitimate medical illness, having a doctor's note, personally communicating with my boss about what was happening, and then finding out afterward that the consequence is 45 hours of lost income.

And if I'm being completely vulnerable, after everything I've been through physically, it's hard not to feel like I'm being penalized for getting sick.

I can't say that is anyone's intention. I don't know that.

I can only tell you how it feels from where I'm sitting.

I've worked there for years. I love my classroom. I love my students. I returned for the first day of school while I was still recovering because being there matters to me.

And the answer I'm left with is:

It's policy.

Maybe that's part of what makes this hurt so much.

Because during these awful weeks, complete strangers on the internet have checked on me. Parents have checked on me. Listeners have checked on me. People who have never met me have sent messages, offered help, and shown me an amount of compassion I wasn't prepared for.

And it's incredibly sad to feel that the institution I actually work for doesn't seem able to offer that same kind of flexibility or compassion in this particular situation.

Whatever anyone thinks about the policy, the financial reality doesn't change.

At $16.50 an hour, 45 hours is $742.50.

My rent is $1,000.

It's already late.

I have around $355 in my bank account.

My next paycheck may only be around $500.

And that's before groceries.

Before gas.

Before health insurance.

Before pet food.

Before all of the ordinary expenses that don't disappear because you got sick.

I'm 44 years old.

I work.

I pay my bills.

I take care of my responsibilities.

And I have never been this broke before.

There is something incredibly humbling—and frankly terrifying—about realizing that you can work full-time, do everything you can to stay afloat, and still be one illness away from not being able to make rent.

That's where I am tonight.

And God, I hate asking this.

I hate it.

I'd much rather sit behind this microphone and ask you to help my mother.

I'd rather tell you about a new development in her case.

I'd rather celebrate the fact that Papi Killed Mommy is charting again.

I'd rather talk about literally anything other than how much money is sitting in my bank account.

But pride isn't going to pay my rent.

So I started a GoFundMe.

If $5 doesn't hurt you, $5 helps me.

If $10 doesn't hurt you, $10 helps me.

And if donating would put you in a difficult financial position, please don't.

Share this episode.

Share the fundraiser.

That helps me, too.

❤️ If you can help me get through this: Help a Pre-K Teacher Through a Financial Crisis — GoFundMe

But I don't want this episode to simply be me asking you for money.

I made it because three weeks ago I knew almost nothing about CHS. I didn't fully appreciate what a GLP-1 dose increase could do to my body.

And if somebody hears my experience and recognizes themselves in it—if some long-term cannabis user who's been standing under scorching-hot showers trying desperately to stop unexplained nausea suddenly hears this and thinks, "Holy shit. That's me."—then something good came from this nightmare.

Please listen to your body.

Ask questions.

Talk to your medical provider.

Don't assume that because you've tolerated something before, your body will always respond the same way.

And somehow, there's another little piece of magic happening at the exact same time.

Nanny Nikki's Imagination Station is charting on Apple too.

My little children's podcast—the one I don't monetize, the one that started because I'm a Pre-K teacher who loves telling stories to kids—is climbing the charts at the very same time as Papi Killed Mommy.

I don't even know how to explain what that feels like.

These two podcasts could not be more different. One was born from the most painful thing that has ever happened to my family. The other was born from the joy I find every day in my classroom. One exists because I'm still fighting for my mother. The other exists because a bunch of little kids reminded me how magical storytelling can be.

And somehow, right now, they're both being heard.

In the middle of one of the hardest few weeks I've had in years, that's something I'm incredibly proud of.

🚂✨ If you have little ones—or you're just curious about the completely different side of my storytelling world—you can climb aboard here:

Listen to Nanny Nikki's Imagination Station on Apple Podcasts

It's whimsical. It's educational. It's completely free. And unlike Papi Killed Mommy, I promise nobody gets murdered. ❤️

While I've been sick in bed, you brought my mother's story roaring back to life.

Thousands of new people have discovered Papi Killed Mommy. You've shared Stacy's story. You've rated and reviewed the podcast. And somehow this tiny independent show—made by one woman sitting behind a microphone trying desperately to make the world care about her mom—has climbed Apple's Top True Crime chart for the third time.

And being sick didn't stop me from fighting for her.

From bed, I've been doing another massive media push.

I've reached out to The Arizona Republic. Phoenix New Times. Channels 3, 5, 10, 12 and 15.

Channel 12 told me an investigative reporter would be reaching out.

And Justin Lum from Channel 10, who covered my mother's case in 2022, emailed me about what has happened since his original reporting and how the story might move forward.

I wrote him back.

I'm not stopping.

So this episode contains two very different kinds of hope.

Hope that sharing what happened to my body might help somebody else.

And hope that all these new eyes on Stacy's case might finally put her story in front of the person who can make a difference.

Tonight, though, I need some of that hope for myself.

I'm alive.

I'm sober.

I'm back at work.

I'm still fighting for my mom.

But financially?

I'm scared.

I've never been this broke before.

I've never wanted to beg my audience for money.

And admitting that I cannot fix this by myself is incredibly difficult.

But somewhere along the way, this stopped being just an audience.

You became my community.

And maybe that's one good thing that has come out of everything I've been through:

For the first time in this incredibly long fight, I don't feel like I'm doing everything alone anymore.

So if you've listened to my mother's story, shared one of my videos, left a review, donated $5, sent me an encouraging message, or simply cared about what happens to this stranger behind a microphone:

Thank you.

Thank you for helping me keep a roof over my head.

Thank you for helping me get through this.

Thank you for helping Papi Killed Mommy climb the charts again.

Thank you for helping me keep Stacy's name alive.

And thank you for reminding me that after everything these last three weeks have thrown at me...

I'm still here.

And I'm still fucking fighting.

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Thirty-three years ago, on the night our mother was murdered, my little sister was only three years old.

As police officers placed us in the back of a patrol car, she kept repeating the same heartbreaking words:

"Papi killed Mommy."

For the past year, you've followed me as I've fought to keep our mother's story alive. Together, we've uncovered evidence, shared long-forgotten interviews, spoken with investigators, met with the county attorney, attended CrimeCon, and watched a small podcast grow into something I never imagined possible. Thousands of people around the world now know my mother's name and the story of what happened on July 9, 1993.

But there has always been one voice missing.

My sister's.

It's been six years since we last spoke.

The last phone call between us was about our mother's case, and I never answered. Looking back, I can't even remember why I was angry. I only remember the regret that followed, because six years is a long time to wonder what might have happened if I had simply picked up the phone.

Recently, something changed.

Just days before the thirty-third anniversary of our mother's death, I learned that my sister had reached out to someone close to me. Then, someone from her life reached out to me. For the first time in years, I realized that maybe the silence between us wasn't the end of the story.

While researching this podcast, I also discovered something I'd never heard before: a recorded conversation between my sister and Investigator Laura Leon from 2023. Listening to that phone call changed me. For years, I told myself that maybe she didn't care. Instead, I heard anger. Hurt. Frustration. I heard someone who sounded a lot like me.

Earlier this year, my Aunt Wendy and I sat down with the county attorney and asked the question we've been asking for more than three decades:

What will it take?

The answer was painfully simple.

A confession.

Or a confrontation call.

That's where this case stands today.

This episode isn't an investigation.

It isn't a timeline.

It isn't about evidence.

It's a letter.

One sister reaching across six years of silence to ask another if she's ready to take one final step together in pursuit of justice for the woman who gave us both life.

I don't know if she'll ever hear these words.

Maybe someone will send them to her.

Maybe she'll find this episode years from now.

Or maybe she'll never press play.

But I couldn't spend the rest of my life wondering what would have happened if I never asked.

So...

This is me asking.

If you've been with me since Episode One, thank you. You've carried my mother's story farther than I ever could have imagined, and you've reminded me that hope can survive even after thirty-three years.

And if, somehow, my sister is listening...

My number hasn't changed.

I'm still here.

And I'll never stop being your sister.

Episode 18: Live with Crime Weekly

Three weeks ago, I was exhausted.

After years of telling the same story, asking the same questions, and fighting the same battles, I was ready to walk away. I was frustrated, discouraged, and wondering whether anyone was really listening.

Then CrimeCon happened.

In this episode, I take you behind the scenes of my journey to Las Vegas for CrimeCon 2026, where I had the opportunity to join Crime Weekly Live alongside Stephanie Harlowe and Derek Levasseur to share my mother's story with a room full of people willing to listen.

From forgetting my merchandise bag thirty minutes into the drive, to getting lost inside Caesars Palace, to navigating panic attacks, chronic pain, and overwhelming emotions, this episode is an honest look at what happened before, during, and after one of the most important weekends of my life.

For the first time, I found myself standing on a stage in front of hundreds of people asking them to do what my family has been asking for more than three decades:

Listen.

Listen to the evidence.

Listen to the interviews.

Listen to the facts.

And decide for yourself whether the death of my mother deserves another look.

I also share my experience reconnecting with Megan Tomlinson, whose journey has become a powerful reminder that answers can still come, even after tragedy. Through her advocacy organization, A Silver Lining of Hope, Megan has transformed unimaginable loss into a mission of support, awareness, and hope for other families navigating homicide investigations and the search for justice.

Her story reminded me of something I desperately needed to remember:

Sometimes people do get answers.

Sometimes people do get justice.

Sometimes the fight is worth it.

Since returning home from CrimeCon, the momentum has continued.

In this episode I discuss:

• My appearance on Crime Weekly Live

• The overwhelming support from attendees and listeners

• New outreach efforts to public officials and government agencies

• Additional complaints and requests for assistance

• My interview with VT

• New opportunities with journalists, creators, and investigators

• Why CrimeCon completely changed my outlook on this fight

• The response we received after sending the latest media coverage to Russell Peterson

CrimeCon did not give me answers.

What it gave me was something I wasn't expecting.

Hope.

Watch Crime Weekly Live

Crime Weekly Live featuring the homicide of Stacy Wasilishin:

https://youtu.be/o8Kls5j0Uyk

A Silver Lining of Hope

Learn more about Megan Tomlinson's advocacy organization:

https://www.silverliningofhope.com/

A Silver Lining of Hope provides support, resources, advocacy, and hope for families affected by homicide, missing persons cases, and violent crime while helping keep victims' stories alive and in the public eye.

Call To Action

For more than 33 years, my family has fought for answers in the homicide of my mother, Stacy Wasilishin.

Stacy Wasilishin was killed in Sedona, Arizona, on July 9, 1993. The Medical Examiner ruled her death a homicide. More than three decades later, no one has been charged, and the case remains unresolved.

Over the years, our family has contacted local law enforcement, prosecutors, the Arizona Attorney General, the FBI, the U.S. Department of Justice, and numerous public officials seeking answers.

Most recently, the Arizona Ombudsman-Citizens' Aide responded to our request for assistance and advised that it does not have jurisdiction over municipal police departments such as the Sedona Police Department. The Ombudsman directed concerns regarding this matter to Sedona city leadership, including the City Manager and City Council.

We are now asking supporters to respectfully request transparency, accountability, oversight, and answers regarding this unresolved homicide investigation.

If you choose to contact any of these agencies or officials, please remain respectful and professional.

This is NOT a request for harassment, threats, personal attacks, or misconduct complaints.

It IS a request for transparency, accountability, and answers for a family that has spent more than 33 years seeking justice.

Questions supporters may wish to ask include:

• Why does a homicide ruled a homicide by the Medical Examiner remain unresolved after more than 33 years?

• What oversight exists for an unsolved homicide investigation of this age?

• What resources are currently being devoted to the investigation?

• Is an independent review of the investigation warranted?

• What steps are being taken to ensure this case receives the attention it deserves?

• Why did Yavapai County Attorney Jim Landis request renewed investigation of this case in 1999, and what became of those efforts?

Contact Information

Sedona Police Department (928) 282-3100 https://www.sedonaaz.gov/police

Sedona City Manager's Office (928) 203-5199 [email protected]

Sedona City Council https://www.sedonaaz.gov/your-government/departments/city-clerk/council-commissions-committees-boards/city-council/contact-the-entire-city-council

Yavapai County Attorney (928) 771-3344 https://yavapaiaz.gov/County-Attorney

Arizona Department of Public Safety (602) 223-2000 https://www.azdps.gov

Arizona POST (602) 223-2514 https://post.az.gov

Arizona Attorney General (602) 542-5025 https://www.azag.gov/complaints

Governor Katie Hobbs (602) 542-4331 https://azgovernor.gov/engage/form/contact-governor-hobbs

Arizona Ombudsman-Citizens' Aide (602) 277-7292 https://www.azoca.gov/complaint-procedure/complaint-form/

U.S. Department of Justice Civil Rights Division (202) 514-3847 https://civilrights.justice.gov

And one final request.

For more than 33 years, I have believed that somebody out there knows something.

People talk.

Secrets are shared.

Stories are told.

Somewhere along the way, someone heard something, saw something, was told something, or knows something they have never reported.

Maybe it seemed unimportant at the time.

Maybe you assumed someone else already knew.

Maybe you've carried it for years without realizing how significant it could be.

But after more than three decades, I still believe the truth exists outside of police reports and case files.

I believe someone out there knows something.

If you are that person, or if you have information about the homicide of Stacy Wasilishin, no matter how small it may seem, I am asking you to please contact the Sedona Police Department.

I am begging you.

Thirty-three years is a long time to wait for answers.

My family deserves answers.

My mother deserves answers.

And if you know something, now is the time to come forward.

My mother's name was Stacy Wasilishin.

She was 32 years old when she was killed.

She deserves answers.

Justice delayed should not mean justice denied.

Thank you for listening.

— Nikki

It's been 36 days since the last episode of Papi Killed Mommy. Lots to fill you in on.

In this episode, I sit down and talk openly about burnout, obsession, grief, media attention, CrimeCon Vegas, and the emotional reality of spending five years living inside my mother's homicide case every single day.

Over the last few months, my mom's case has received major media attention, including front-page local coverage, a national article from A&E, and now a brand-new feature from The Independent https://www.the-independent.com/news/world/americas/crime/cold-case-murder-stephanie-wasilishin-tiktok-b2968369.html after a journalist discovered me through the CrimeCon Facebook community.

We talk about what that coverage means to me, why media pressure has always been the goal, and how surreal it feels preparing to walk onto a stage with Crime Weekly at CrimeCon 2026 after starting this journey alone on TikTok years ago.

But this episode also goes somewhere I never expected…

I talk honestly about hitting a wall with true crime. I don't see my self going forward with other cases.

After years of reading police reports, autopsy reports, case files, and reliving trauma publicly online, I've started questioning whether I can continue existing solely inside this world emotionally and creatively.

And somehow… that led to the accidental launch of an entirely different podcast.

Introducing: Nanny Nikki's Imagination Station https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/nanny-nikkis-imagination-station/id1896688793 — where turning the page is just the beginning.

A brand-new children's storytelling podcast inspired by my work with kids, imagination, storytelling, voices, characters, and creativity.

Episode two, Dickie Birdie Has Two Names, is an original story inspired by my tiny senior chihuahua, Dickie Birdie — and honestly, creating it may have been the happiest I've felt creatively in years.

For the first time in a long time, I created something joyful instead of painful.

In this episode we also somehow spiral into: • kidnapped classroom hermit crabs. I'm a Crabnapper • why the hermit crab trade is heartbreaking. • senior rescue dogs • Arizona heat • TikTok violations • emotional exhaustion • media pressure • CrimeCon prep chaos • and whether I'm literally just waiting for a deathbed confession at this point

So basically… a normal week in my life.

If you're coming to CrimeCon Vegas, come say hi. I'll be at my booth with merch, framed articles, giveaway signed front page articles, and Dickie Birdie riding around in his tiny red stroller.

🐾 Support Nikk's zoo of rescue animals, senior pets, and apparently now hermit crabs: Amazon Wishlist

Thank you for continuing to keep my mom's name alive after all these years.

I'll see you at CrimeCon… or I'll see you right back here after.

In this episode of Papi Killed Mommy, Nikki shares a major turning point in her mother Stephanie Wasilishin's case — from national media recognition… to a shift in strategy… to one of the most personal decisions she's made in 33 years.

After being told there is no legal path forward without a confession, Nikki opens up about what the last month has actually looked like behind the scenes — the frustration, the burnout, and the moment everything changed.

Because this episode marks something important:

Momentum.

🎙️ Episode Highlights

📰 A&E Delivers — National Feature Released On April 9, 2026, A&E published a national article on Stephanie Wasilishin's case — bringing long-overdue visibility to a story that has largely gone unheard for decades.

📰 Read the article here: https://www.aetv.com/articles/stephanie-wasilishin

This moment represents more than just coverage — it's validation, visibility, and the beginning of something bigger.

🎧 The Last 33 Days — What Changed

This episode walks through:

• Being told the case cannot move forward without a confession
• The emotional aftermath of that reality
• Taking a step back — and what that looked like
• The realization that this case needs bigger media, bigger platforms, and more pressure
• Why television and national exposure are key to movement in cold cases

🎤 CrimeCon 2026 — Next Steps

With CrimeCon approaching, Nikki is preparing to take this story directly to creators, networks, and anyone willing to listen.

This is no longer just about telling the story.

It's about getting it in front of the right people.

📱 Follow Nikki in Real Time

For updates, behind-the-scenes advocacy, and ongoing developments:

👉 https://www.tiktok.com/@nicolewasilishin

✊ Sign the Petition — Justice for Stephanie Wasilishin

👉 https://www.change.org/justiceforstacy

Every signature helps increase visibility and keeps pressure on this case.

🐾 Dickie Birdie & Senior Dog + Kitty Wishlist

I'm not asking for support for myself.

But I will ask for my animals.

They are my babies — my dogs and my cats — and right now, they're all getting older at the same time. Living in Arizona, the extreme heat makes it really hard to keep them comfortable and safe through the summer.

This wishlist includes things like cooling mats, food, and basic items to help them get through the heat — especially for dogs like Jake who struggle the most in the warmer months.

I also have my 16-year-old cat, Manny, whose kidneys are starting to go. He has a prescription for kidney care food that I have not been able to fill yet, and that's something I'm really trying to get for him as soon as possible.

If you're in a position to help at all — even something small — it truly means more than you know. And if not, just being here and listening is everything.

👉 https://www.amazon.com/hz/wishlist/ls/49E74TM4J5D8

📣 If You Have Information

If you have any information related to this case — no matter how small — or if you know Russell Bennett Peterson or have ever crossed paths with him, please come forward.

📧 [email protected]

Sedona Police Department: 📞 (928) 282-3100

Please only reach out if you have legitimate information that could help move this case forward.

And then… there's this.

For the first time in 33 years… Nikki is no longer waiting.

After being told that a confession is the only way forward, she made the decision to stop sitting on the sidelines — and step directly into the space she's been kept out of for decades.

A message was sent.

To Russell Bennett Peterson.

Requesting a conversation. Face to face. On camera.

An opportunity to speak. To explain. To tell the truth.

The message has been read.

There has been no response.

Yet.

This episode is not the end of anything.

It's the beginning of the next phase.

And this time… it's personal.