TEENAGER VANISHED IN THE MIDDLE OF THE NIGHT — NINE YEARS LATER, HER FAMILY IS TURNING THE $300 SHE LEFT BEHIND INTO A MISSION TO SAVE OTHER KIDS

FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. — Nine years after 15-year-old Sophie Reeder disappeared without a trace, her family is still searching for answers.

But amid the heartbreak and uncertainty, one small detail from the night she vanished has taken on enormous meaning: $300 found inside her room.

To Sophie’s family, the money was more than cash. It was a sign that the teenager never intended to disappear permanently.

Now, they are using that money to launch a nonprofit designed to help protect other children from the dangers Sophie may have encountered online.

A NIGHT THAT CHANGED EVERYTHING

Sophie was 15 when she disappeared from her Fort Lauderdale, Florida, home on May 20, 2017.

Her father, Patrick Reeder, remembered seeing her several hours earlier on the night of May 19. She eventually went to her bedroom around 11 p.m.

But something seemed unusual.

“She was pacing up and down the house. From the front to the back, front to the back,” Patrick recalled in an interview with NBC’s Dateline.

He told her to go to bed because it was getting late.

Those would be among the last moments her family would ever have with her.

At approximately 2:52 a.m., a security camera captured Sophie walking alone along Davie Boulevard.

She was gone.

And for her family, the nightmare had begun.

HER PHONE LED INVESTIGATORS TO A HOME

According to a 2017 police affidavit and search-warrant application reviewed by PEOPLE, investigators were able to follow part of Sophie’s movements through her phone records and Gmail account.

Her phone placed her at a residence roughly two miles from her home.

The property was associated with Leonard Jennings, a convicted felon.

According to the affidavit, Sophie called Jennings at approximately 3:07 a.m., around the time she arrived at the residence.

Her phone’s Google location data remained active until approximately 9:13 a.m.

Then the digital trail stopped.

The phone lost its cellular connection, meaning it may have been switched off, had its location services disabled or was otherwise no longer transmitting a signal.

Police have investigated Jennings and spoken with members of his family who were living at the residence at the time. Searches were also conducted.

However, authorities have made an important distinction:

Jennings is not currently considered a suspect.

Police describe him as a person of interest while detectives continue examining whether he had any involvement in Sophie’s disappearance.

NINE YEARS — AND NO ANSWER

Nearly a decade has passed since Sophie disappeared.

She has never been found.

Authorities continue to offer a $25,000 reward for information that could help solve the case — the same amount that was offered when she first vanished.

And now, in an unusual development, Fort Lauderdale police have consulted psychic profilers as part of their effort to generate new leads.

Police acknowledged that this is not their traditional approach.

“Traditionally, FLPD does not consult anyone outside of law enforcement on ongoing criminal cases,” the department told PEOPLE.

But officials said Sophie’s case was different because investigators were willing to explore “new and unique approaches” if there was any possibility of uncovering information.

Detectives are currently evaluating information provided during a recent consultation to determine whether anything could assist the investigation.

For Sophie’s family, however, the decision has produced mixed emotions.

Her aunt, Kirsten Milhorn, described the move as a “misallocation of resources.”

Sophie’s father said he wanted to see more conventional investigative efforts — including a larger reward for information.

“It’s encouraging that they want to do something,” he said, “but I would like to see a track record or success stories.”

Milhorn was even more direct.

She said police had “dropped the ball” and that the family deserved transparency, consistent communication and meaningful investigative work.

Most importantly, she said, Sophie deserves answers.

THE $300 THAT MAY TELL A DIFFERENT STORY

When investigators searched Sophie’s room after she disappeared, they reportedly found a candle still burning.

They also found a bag containing $300.

Her father said he did not know where the money came from because Sophie did not have a job or receive a large allowance.

To her family, the discovery was significant.

They believe the money suggests Sophie expected to return home.

“She intended to come back home and wasn’t a runaway,” Milhorn told PEOPLE.

That belief has remained central to the family’s fight for answers.

TURNING A HEARTBREAKING CLUE INTO A PURPOSE

Instead of allowing those nine years to be defined only by loss, Sophie’s family decided to turn the money into something that could protect other children.

They used the $300 found after Sophie’s disappearance to help launch Sophie’s Light, a nonprofit foundation focused on developing digital-safety education for schools.

Milhorn, an elementary school teacher, said children now spend enormous portions of their lives online — and many may not understand the dangers they can encounter.

The goal is to teach young people how to recognize warning signs, protect themselves and make safer decisions online.

The foundation was created in Sophie’s name, but its mission reaches far beyond her case.

QUESTIONS ABOUT ONLINE CONTACT

During the investigation, authorities discovered evidence that Sophie had visited so-called sugar-daddy websites and had communicated online with someone who allegedly had possible links to sex trafficking, according to Dateline.

But investigators have not confirmed that Sophie met anyone through those websites.

They also have not established that the person allegedly connected to trafficking played any role in her disappearance.

That distinction is crucial.

The online activity is part of the investigation, but it does not provide a confirmed explanation for what happened to Sophie.

Still, it has reinforced her family’s determination to teach children about online risks.

“Sophie was talking with people online the night she went missing,” Milhorn said.

Her answer has been to transform that painful discovery into education.

THE SEARCH IS STILL ON

For Sophie’s family, nine years have not diminished the need for answers.

They still want to know where she went after walking away from home in the early hours of May 20, 2017.

They want to know what happened after her phone stopped transmitting.

And above all, they want to know whether Sophie is still alive and where she is today.

Authorities continue to ask anyone with information to come forward.

Anyone who may be able to help locate Sophie can contact the Fort Lauderdale Police Department at 954-828-6677

Nine years ago, Sophie left behind $300.

Her family believes she left it because she planned to come home.

She never did.

Now that same $300 has become the foundation of a mission carrying her name — one intended to warn other children about dangers online before it is too late.

And while Sophie’s family works to protect other children, they continue to hold onto the hope that somewhere, somehow, the missing piece of her story is still waiting to be found.