More than 35 years after Mervyn Rushton disappeared on the Central Coast, his family's search for answers will reach a new audience through a book examining some of Australia's most notable missing persons cases.
Rushton's story is among 12 long-term cases explored in Lost: More True Stories from Families of Australian Missing Persons, the third book by Australian Missing Persons Register director Nicole Morris.
Morris founded the not-for-profit register in 2005 after struggling to find information about missing people online.
"I thought, well, there should be, because how do these missing persons get found or how do people get information about them?" she said.
"I found that I could help people and I think in life, if you can help people in a certain way, you should."
Mervyn Rushton was 19 when he disappeared on April 17, 1991.
He travelled from Lithgow to the Central Coast with his sister Tara to visit another sister, Sharon. The trio spent the day at North Entrance Beach, but the following morning Rushton was gone. His wallet and clothes remained at Sharon's apartment.
Despite repeated checks of government, banking and police records, no confirmed sighting or other trace of him was found.
A 2019 coronial inquest determined Rushton died shortly after his disappearance, but could not establish where, how or why he died. The coroner found there was insufficient evidence to determine whether he drowned or met with foul play.
Morris became involved in the case and this time decided to include Mervyn in the book, his face featuring on the cover of Lost.
"I started writing it thinking, 'He just went missing from the beach on the Central Coast, that's it'," she said.
"Then when I started writing it, I found it was a deeply disturbing case.
"Mervyn's history is horrifying and deeply entwined, I think, in Lithgow's history. I think a lot of Lithgow people will be familiar with the family and the case."
While Morris does not describe herself as an investigator, she said her research had uncovered witnesses in some cases who had not previously spoken to police.
"If anything I've written contributes to finding these missing persons, then that's such a win," she said.
Her work through the register has also helped members of the public recognise missing people in everyday settings, including on trains and in public places.
"People may think that the police are solely responsible for finding missing persons and that's not the case at all," Morris said.
"They absolutely need the public's help."
Lost also examines unidentified human remains and the reasons young people go missing, drawing on accounts from relatives, investigators, searchers and former teenage runaways.
For Rushton's sisters, Morris said the book was an assurance their brother had not been forgotten.
"That's the overwhelming feeling that I'm getting from the sisters - thank you for not forgetting Mervyn, because he's so important to them," she said.
"If anyone has any information, it's never too late to come forward."
Mervyn's sister Tara said she is thankful for Nicole's work.
"She was a great help... she does an amazing job," Tara said.
National Missing Persons Week will run from August 2 to 8 and aims to raise awareness, profile long-term cases and encourage anyone with information to come forward.
Information about a missing person can be provided anonymously to Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000
