Father of Missing Man Buoyed by Offers of Aid

Sightings, tips, radio and TV interviews, as well as offers of help Wednesday overwhelmed Mel Adrian, the Canadian man searching Los Angeles for his 22-year-old son.

Adrian came to the Southland 11 days ago when he learned that his son Kelvin’s maroon Pontiac had been impounded in West Hollywood. Kelvin, a Ford mechanic, disappeared Christmas Eve, failing to show up at a family dinner.

A story in The Times on Wednesday drew scores of calls, including one from a Santa Monica police officer who recognized Kelvin’s photo and remembered giving him a ticket for jaywalking last week.

The officer told Adrian that Kelvin had just left a restaurant with a coffee and pastry. The young man looked as if he hadn’t shaved for several days and said he was living on the beach in Santa Monica and in Venice, the officer recalled.

Adrian said he was thrilled to learn that his son is alive. He planned to extend his visit to the weekend to follow up the tips.

Adrian, 49, a plumbing and heating contractor from High Prairie, an Alberta town of 3,000, has been searching the city with no luck. Sheriff’s deputies had told him that since his son was an adult who had broken no law, there was little they could do. No one matching his son’s description was in the morgue or local hospitals, they said.

Sheriff’s Det. Sgt. Ray Walker, who is handling the case, declined to return repeated calls from The Times.

The outpouring of help Wednesday from Angelenos moved Adrian to tears.

One person offered to put him and his son Brandon up in a guest house. Another volunteered to help plaster posters across the city--an effort that Adrian and Brandon have tackled single-handedly.

“I’m just overwhelmed by the generosity of people here,” Adrian said. “For me it’s an unknown city, a city you hear a lot of bad reports about, and yet people have been so generous. A simple ‘thank you’ is not enough.”

Scott Eben, like others, phoned the Child Find hotline because he felt moved by Adrian’s plight. Eben, a single father who lives with his 16-year-old son, offered to drive Adrian around town, since he knows the city well. After reading about Adrian, Eben checked on his own son, sleeping in his room.

“It could happen to any parent,” he said. “I’m glad it wasn’t me.”

Kelvin Adrian, who had never traveled outside Canada, is not believed to have known anyone in Southern California. He is 5 feet 11 and weighs 130 pounds. His eyes are brown; his hair is dark blond. A surveillance camera showed him leaving his apartment in Calgary Dec. 24. Mel Adrian hasn’t seen him since.

“Would you run away from home and leave all your stuff behind?” the father asked. “I think it’s a misguided adventure; something has gone wrong.”

Anyone with information is asked to call (800) 387-7962.