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yes. she always told me that. reporter: cherrie was just 8 when she disappeared. she helped put a face on missing children nationwide. first child ever on a have you seen me mailer still delivered to homes across the country. but today, for the first time in decades, janice mckinney has hope, thanks to this man, pennsylvania state trooper robert mcgraw. i believe cherrie was abducted by somebody she knows very well. and believe that this person had the ability to basically lure cherrie to their vehicle without her giving it a second thought prior to her disappearance. reporter: mcgraw took the lead on the case last summer. and after poring through the 3600 page case file, he s closer than ever to cracking it. we are highly optimistic that this lead has the potential to bring closure to cherrie s family. reporter: mcgraw says he gets ....
Tips about once a week, but most don t pan out. this one he feels especially good about, although he will not give us specifics. we ll pursue this lead until we find it is viable or a dead end. you try not to get too excited. it s difficult but you have to stay grounded because this lead could it could take us nowhere. reporter: working the case of a missing child is difficult even for the most hardened law enforcers. it is. i can t imagine if that was my child. i can t imagine the pain that her mother and stepfather must wake up with every day. i couldn t imagine that. that was her dog and that was her cat. reporter: today cherrie would be 34. if he s alive, this is what investigators think she might look like. she could be married and have children and have graduated and i could be a grandmother. reporter: after all these years, janice mckinney still ....
And i think my guilt started at that point because up until that day, i was there. and if i would have been there, she wouldn t i wouldn t be going through this. reporter: it was a day just like this one, snow on the ground, the sun shining. cherrie got off the school bus and had to go 200 feet around that bend to get to your driveway. investigators never found any foot prints which means cherrie never got very far. kids on the bus described a blue van right behind the bus with a snow capped mountain and a skier painted on its side. investigators checked out hundreds of leads, no van, no cherrie. i think that the last words i probably told her was have a good day and i do love you. and that was probably as i took her down to the bus stop and she got on the bus. reporter: did she tell you that she loved you back? ....
What is that moment of panic like, that first moment when you realize your child has disappeared? it s the most scariest thing. i think my guilt started at that point, because up until that day, i was there. and if i would have been there, i wouldn t be going through this. reporter: it was a day just like this one, snow on the ground, the sun shining, cherrie got off her school bus right here. she had to go about 200 feet, around that bend to get to her driveway. then another 300 feet to her front door. investigators never found any foot prints, which means she never got very far. kids on the bus described a blue van right behind the bus with a snow capped mountain, and a skier painted on its side. investigators checked out hundreds of leads. no van. no cherrie. ....
What is that moment of panic like, that first moment when you realize your child has disappeared? it s the most scariest thing. i think my guilt started at that point, because up until that day, i was there. and if i would have been there, i wouldn t be going through this. reporter: it was a day just like this one, snow on the ground, the sun shining, cherrie got off her school bus right here. she had to go about 200 feet, around that bend to get to her driveway. then another 300 feet to her front door. investigators never found any foot prints, which means she never got very far. kids on the bus described a blue van right behind the bus with a snow capped mountain, and a skier painted on its side. investigators checked out hundreds of leads. no van. no cherrie. ....