Two Months Later, Few Updates in Search For Harris

The search for community activist Lenny Harris appears to have stalled since two months ago, frustrating neighbors and friends.

In an email to Patch last week, Alexandria Police spokesperson Jody Donaldson wrote that “unfortunately” there is “nothing new” in the case.

Harris was last seen at the evening of Sept. 21. The next day, his cell phone was found on the Woodrow Wilson Bridge.

A few days later, Police released a with a distinct forearm tattoo using Harris’ credit card at a King Street ATM. Police also distributed a connected to the attempted use of Harris’ credit card in Prince George’s County, Md.

The morning of Oct. 11, , but what exactly happened to the longtime Alexandria activist remains unknown.

No new information has been released since the discovery of Harris’ car.

“It is frustrating,” said Meg Booth, a Del Ray neighbor of the Harris family. “I don’t know a lot about law enforcement and missing persons. [The police] found Lenny’s car. They did a canine search and a helicopter search of that area. It just seems the police may or may not have leads they are not telling us about.”

Booth took to neighborhood listservs to distribute media reports and other updates hoping someone, somewhere could offer a tip to Harris’ whereabouts.

Harris was working as an exterminator out of his home at the time of his disappearance. Booth said she would see him several times a week getting ready for work.

“He always had a smile and was quick to ask ‘How are you?’,” Booth said. “He was just an everyday fixture in our lives. For him all of a sudden not to be able to come home, it just doesn’t make sense.”

Booth said someone who volunteered to tack up posters of Harris in hopes of generating information noticed a large number of the fliers were mysteriously taken down shortly after they were posted in one distinct area of Alexandria.

“It seems like there’s some info out there,” Booth said. “I think people start circulating [the photos] at work one more time, maybe we could get something.”

Shortly after his disappearance, a Lenny Harris Reward Fund was established by private donors at . The Del Ray Business Association pledged $1,000 to the fund.

Harris was an active member of the DRBA (then called the Potomac West Business Association) in the 1990s when he owned and operated a T-shirt shop on Mt. Vernon Avenue across the street from .   

“It’s just bizarre,” Del Ray Business Association officer Gayle Reuter said. “It’s really sad and I’m embarrassed there haven’t been [any results in the investigation]. I trust the police are working on this and there’s just information that they can’t make public.”

Reuter said Harris was influential part of the business community in the days when there weren’t many open storefronts on Mt. Vernon Avenue. She said few current members of the DRBA were around when Harris was involved more than a decade ago.

“He always stepped up,” Reuter said. “If it was the Turkey Trot or whatever, if he saw a need he would try to be there and help.”

Reuter wondered if increasing the reward fund might lead to more information.

“We’ll continue to take our cues from the police and the family,” she said.

Before his disappearance, Harris was active on several city boards and subcommittees. A few years ago, he was honored by the local chapter of the NAACP for his work in the community.

Harris also co-founded Operation H.O.P.E., a nonprofit dedicated to providing alternative public services by offering free tutoring, mentoring, life skills classes, career development and the promotion of cultural awareness in Alexandria.

For the last 10 years, Harris was the chief organizer of the One Love Festival, a local fair aimed to bring the whole community together. The most recent festival was held Aug. 20 in the field next to .

Harris clearly has many connections in the community and was quick to lend a hand. Could someone taking advantage of Harris’ generosity and altruism have led to his disappearance?

“There are a million things you can speculate,” Booth said.