Kaelyn Moore

Her parents were teens when they had her.

They had a lot going on in their own personal lives.

There's reports of them struggling with alcohol addiction.

And they split up when Jermaine was about a year old.

Jermaine stayed with her mom, and she didn't really see her dad much after that, but they did stay connected over the years.

Things didn't get much better for her mom, though, after her parents split.

According to Jermaine's best friend Jocelyn, Jermaine later witnessed her mother being physically abused by a live-in boyfriend.

It's not really clear how old Germaine was at the time, but luckily she had other relatives that were willing to take her in both on and off of the reservation.

Her extended family is described as being incredibly close.

It's very typical for Germaine's tribe as well.

Elders in the Salish and Kootenai culture take a very active role in child rearing.

They're viewed as the leaders of their families.

So throughout her early life, Germaine alternated between living with her mother and her great-grandfather, Elmer Sonny Morgeau, both in Eschalip, Montana.

Eschalip is this small town that's located on the Flathead Reservation.

It was previously called Dixon at the time that Germaine disappeared, but in this episode, we're going to refer to it as Eschalip.

As Jalip is kind of described as being this pretty boring small town, there's not even a movie theater or mall.

There's like nowhere to really get food.

But Jermaine's childhood there was never boring.

She loved nature.

She had all kinds of pets.