When cold case breakthroughs are splashed across front pages, thousands of Australian families dare to let themselves feel a flicker of hope.
Described as members of a club no one wanted to join, the families of missing people tend to keep a close eye on other similar cases.
Any developments can sparking a feeling of hope they, too, may soon get answers.
That's according to missing persons researcher Sarah Wayland, who has spent her career working with families left behind.
They experience a type of unresolved grief known as ambiguous loss, a term coined by American therapist Pauline Boss who observed that the families of soldiers missing in action had different experiences to those who knew their loved one had died in conflict.
The University of New England associate professor said families often express happiness at breakthroughs in other cases but it's tinged with the sadness of confronting what may have happened to their own loved one.
"When they see that there's been an investment in an investigation, or that somebody has been identified as a person of interest, or that authorities are starting to act on something, it does create a sense that maybe there'll be an investment in their case," Dr Wayland told AAP.
"It's really difficult, that tense relationship between police and families of missing people, because families know that they have to be connected with the police because they're the ones that are going to help them get the outcome that they want.
"But it's really difficult for both police and for families to continually have the news that they haven't been able to do anything."
Dr Wayland works closely with the Missed Foundation, an organisation set up by Loren O'Keeffe after the 2011 disappearance of her brother Daniel before his body was tragically found at their family property.
Ms O'Keeffe this week flew to California to spend time with 92-year-old Ruth Garciacelay, whose teenage daughter Julie mysteriously disappeared in Melbourne in 1975.
Buoyed by the recent arrest in the Easey Street cold case murders of two women in Melbourne in the same era, Ms Garciacelay doesn't want to die without knowing what happened to her beloved daughter.
"I am extremely grateful to the people who are working on this case and their loyalty to my daughter," Ms Garciacelay said this week.
"I sit here and I think of the years when there was silence, deafening silence – (but) they have opened up this unsolved case and continue to devote their time and work in commemoration of my daughter Julie."
The American teenager had been living in Melbourne for less than a year when she disappeared, her underwear, pyjamas and torn items of clothing found at her flat.
On Friday, friends and supporters gathered for a memorial service at St John's Lutheran Church in Southbank to remember her life, with a tree planted and plaque installed in her honour.
Ms Garciacelay and Ms O'Keeffe watched the service together via a livestream, after the pair connected over their ambiguous loss.
Ms O'Keeffe said it's a complex experience, as those left behind grapple with both their loved one's absence and the despair of not knowing if or when their pain will end.
"The not-knowing is torture, but it's not a dress-rehearsal for if/when your loss is confirmed," Ms O'Keeffe said.
"Our family was fortunate to get resolution, but after living with so much hope for almost five years, Dan's death was a whole new grief to process.
"Resolution for longer term cases like Julie's is the obvious goal but it is also steeped in pain, because it's likely confirmation of what has been feared and dreaded for almost five decades."
Psychologist Paul Stevenson has worked with families at the centre of some of the nation's most high-profile missing persons cases.
He has observed cold case developments bringing up triggers for families in other cases, and believes the rest of society needs to be more mindful of how they act.
"People particularly do tend to distance themselves from people who are grieving rather than support them," he said.
He said society expects people to be in grief until they know for certain what happened, which can leave them feeling lonely.
"Particularly in ambiguous loss cases ... they can't be seen in public, to be joining in with their community, they're almost expected to be isolated and alone at home and suffering loss.
"The community sometimes doesn't stop to realise that people have needs to be embraced rather than to be outcast."
Dr Wayland said ambiguous loss doesn't get easier with time as people feel continually let down, particularly if investigations don't pan out, media appeals turn up nothing or special days like birthdays and anniversaries pass.
"It's usually kind of like six or 12 months if that person remains missing, that people start to think about, 'hang on, what if I have to live with this for a long time, what are some of the therapeutic or the kind of psychological supports that I might need?'," she said.
While no one ever expects to deal with a loved one going missing, she urged anyone experiencing it or looking to support others to utilise free resources through the Missed Foundation's videos.
No one has ever been charged over Julie Garciacelay's disappearance and the investigation remains open, with Victoria Police vowing to thoroughly investigate any new leads.
Missing Persons Squad Detective Senior Sergeant Tony Combridge urged anyone with knowledge of what happened to reach out, saying friendships or allegiances may have changed after 49 years.
"Those responsible for her disappearance, or those who have knowledge of what happened, have had to live with this secret for almost five decades," he said.
"It doesn't matter how insignificant you think the piece of information is, it could be exactly what our investigators need."
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