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More than 50 years after Sheila Allen’s tragic disappearance, the Village of Colonie dedicates a memorial in her honor.
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While a scholarship in her name continues to support local students, ensuring her legacy lives on for generations to come
COLONIE—Glenn Allen doesn’t have a specific memory of his sister, Sheila.
As a rambunctious 8-year-old, he did his best to give her a hard time when she babysat him.
“I was definitely a handful, but she always managed me without being mean or punishing,” he said, adding how she managed his mischievous nature with patience and humor. “She had a gift for diffusing situations with good cheer.” David Allen laughed as he recalled the benefits of being a young teenage boy with an older sister in high school. He recalled the invite to a neighbor’s in-ground pool, a classmate of his sister’s. The cool respite from the summer heat may not have happened without her. But when her girlfriends came over to the house on another day, he was not welcomed to stay. The Left Banke’s “Pretty Ballerina” still played on the radio.
I had a date with a pretty ballerina
Her hair so brilliant that it hurtin’ my eyes
I asked her for this dance and then she obliged me
Was I surprised? Yeah
Was I surprised? No, not at all“Pretty Ballerina”
“You have to go now,” she told him, shooing him away. “I’m having my friends over and you’re too young.”
He was 14. She was going on 17.
They lived in a brick-faced cape on Rapple Drive with their parents, Edward and Helen. One of the many cookie-cutter homes built after World War II to address the demand for families who sought after green patches of lawn and white picket fences under bright blue skies.
A familiar suburban neighborhood within the village, but in 1970, it was an altogether different place. The commercial lots that now surround Central Avenue were undeveloped, wooded paradises. The setting for fantastical stories involving cowboys, tree forts, hide-and-go-seek and Kick the Can.
“When I grew up, it was, you gotta be home when the street lights come on,” said Colonie Fire Company Chief Jeffrey Kayser, who has spent 58 of his 60 years in the village. “[If] you weren’t playing in your yard, you were someplace in the neighborhood. You weren’t sitting home on a computer, you were out with the other kids.”
As kids relished in their imagination outside, living room televisions cast a black-and-white picture of a tumultuous world where dreamers were killed, teenagers fought wars, and hippies raged against the establishment. Those who didn’t yet rebel were enrolled at St. Michael’s youth group where Sheila was a counselor.
“Sheila was a big part of St. Michael’s youth group,” Kayser said. “In the 70s and 80s, St. Michael’s was a much bigger church and it had a very large youth group. … There were a few hundred kids in those youth groups.”
“She was a model of responsibility and kindness,” David added, listing her community work, her attention to grades, and her work as a gymnast. She would be known for her upbeat, caring nature, and her drive to help others. “She always had this group of friends around her, these good kids who were doing good things,” David said. “She was always on the go—working, volunteering, making plans for the future.”
But on a rainy October night, days before her 17th birthday, Sheila didn’t return from the library. David helped his father look for her the next morning. They found her belongings strewn on the ground, near the bus stop on Central Avenue.
I called her yesterday, it should have been tomorrow
I could not keep this joy that was inside
I beg for her to tell me if she really loved me
Somewhere, a mountain is moving
I’m afraid it’s moving without me“Pretty Ballerina”
Brett Vandervogen remembered having a crush on her, which was a problem. The idea of learning about sex in school stirred enough fervor that families could opt to have their kids learn in church, and Sheila was his counselor. His anxiety was quelled once he learned Father Charles Dwyer would lead the instruction.
“I think many of us boys did [have a crush on her],” he shared in an online statement. “She was just fun, warm, and sweet. And, of course, pretty.”
Sheila had a vibrant presence, with long, dark hair that fell past her shoulders and a warm, bright smile that left a lasting impression on those who knew her. Kayser recalled her frequent visits to his family’s home, describing her as always full of energy and surrounded by friends.
“She was beautiful,” he said. “And one of those people who was constantly moving—whether it was school, youth group, or just hanging out with friends.” Her natural grace extended beyond her social life, manifesting in her love for gymnastics, where she excelled as both an athlete and a leader at school.
In her junior year at Colonie Central High School, she balanced her athletic passions with a strong academic record, maintaining high grades while working part-time jobs in addition to her time at St. Michael’s. She had clear plans for the future, hoping to study physical education in college and eventually become a P.E. teacher.
“She loved being active, and she wanted to share that with others,” David remembered. “Gymnastics was her thing, but really, she just enjoyed the idea of helping people stay healthy and find joy in movement.”
Sheila’s disappearance was deeply unsettling. Kayser remembered how it shook his family but also the entire village. He recalled being just 6 years old at the time, but the impact of her loss stayed with him throughout his life. His older siblings were friends with Sheila, and he remembered how she would often visit their home.
“Sheila was a part of our lives, even at that young age I knew who she was,” he said. “When she went missing, it was like the innocence of our neighborhood was shattered.”
His family, like many others, joined the search efforts, combing through the woods and neighborhoods. His parents, along with local volunteer firefighters, were part of the community-wide search that lasted for weeks.
“It hit our family hard. My siblings were devastated. Everyone was scared,” he said. “This was a close-knit place where kids ran around freely, but after that, doors were locked, and things were never quite the same.”
Neighborhood mothers fed the Allens with hope, that she likely ran away with a boy. “You know how girls are these days,” they’d share. Helen knew her daughter better than that. Edward wouldn’t listen to speculation. She was “not that kind of a girl,” he told newspapers.
And when I wake on the dreary Sunday morning
I open up my eyes to find there’s rain
And something strange within says go ahead and find her
Just close your eyes, yeah
Just close your eyes and she’ll be there
She’ll be there
She’ll be there“Pretty Ballerina”
Sheila’s body was found seven months later by a group of teenagers hiking along the Watervliet Reservoir in Guilderland on a Monday evening. The following morning Edward and Helen confessed to a reporter they long resolved to the fact that she wouldn’t be found alive. They just didn’t want to face it, until they had to accept it.
“She didn’t run away,” Edward said that morning. “She was taken.”
More than 600 people attended her funeral at St. Clare’s Church, nearly two-thirds of whom were Colonie Central High School students excused from classes by principal John Connolly. Her casket was draped with pink and white carnations, and white dahlias. Next to her laid another display of carnations that spelled the words “Class of ‘71” in her school colors. She was supposed to graduate with honors the following month.
In February 1975, State police arrested Charles Oechler, a 34-year-old Ballston Lake man, and Thomas Nieckarz, a 24-year-old from Niskayuna, after obtaining information from an unrelated investigation. They would plead guilty to murder, receive 20 years to life, and be sent to prison at Groveland Correctional Facility.
In Colonie, St. Michael’s honored Sheila by erecting a memorial next to a stream that ran behind the church. Over time, the grounds along the stream were overtaken by nature. People avoided bringing up her name. Vandervogen said he came to know the Allen brothers later, bonding over sharing the Allen family name as distant cousins, but he never became close. He blames himself for that.
”I never had the guts to bring Sheila up,” he said. “I had no idea the kind of pain they carried, and I didn’t want to be the one to cause them more pain with such an ugly subject.”
Glenn said the subject was avoided at home, too. His collection of stories and memories surrounding his sister was stunted, limited to when he was a young schoolboy. Any opportunity to learn more about her from others didn’t present itself.
“I think many people would assume that at age 63, I’ve processed this, but a lot of that stopped for me at age eight,” he said.
In recent years, Glenn has found solace in connecting with others who knew Sheila. He started a Facebook group dedicated to her memory, allowing friends and former classmates to share stories and memories of her.
The outpouring of support from the community has been instrumental in his healing process. He’s learned more about his sister’s life and character through these shared memories, which has helped him feel closer to her even decades later.
“Hearing these stories helps me know her better,” Glenn said.
Peace
David recalled that in their parole applications, neither Oechler nor Nieckarz fully accepted responsibility for Sheila’s murder, using “weasel wording” to avoid direct blame. Despite this, the Allen family ultimately deferred to the parole board’s judgment. Although they didn’t forgive her murderers, David explained that he could no longer harbor hatred or seek retribution.
“I just thought that if the parole board felt that these guys have paid their debt and had fully admitted what they did, then it didn’t serve any purpose to keep them behind bars,” he said. “It wasn’t about forgiving them because there were no mitigating circumstances, but I couldn’t keep wanting them to be hurt. That wouldn’t bring me peace.”
Nieckarz and Oechler were paroled in 2018 and 2020, respectively.
The Sheila Allen Memorial Scholarship awarded its first gift in 2019, aided by a $5,000 donation from an anonymous donor. Deb Bauer, a former classmate of Sheila’s, had approached the family with the idea.
The scholarship is awarded to female, college-bound seniors from Colonie Central with a GPA of 2.8 or higher. It includes an essay about dreams deferred. Since inception, a total of $20,000 has been awarded to deserving students, with $15,000 of that amount coming from the Sheila Allen Memorial Fund Ltd.
David’s wife, Margaret, has helped in the entire process. The two met in 1981, and though she never had the opportunity to meet her sister-in-law, David said she has come to understand Sheila’s impact through stories from the Colonie community.
“She’s gotten to know my sister through the community… it’s a piece of the puzzle for her.”
The Allen family aims to raise enough money to endow the scholarship permanently, ensuring future generations can benefit. For more information, or to contribute, visit https://sheilaallenmemorialfund.org.
A new monument
The Village of Colonie will dedicate a memorial on Wednesday, Oct. 9, in Sheila’s honor. The memorial, which is to be located on the front lawn of Village Hall, Mayor Jim Rubino said commemorates the life of a beloved community member whose tragic death continues to resonate with residents more than 50 years later.
The Village’s decision to erect the memorial came after Chief Jeffrey Kayser, a longtime resident, proposed the idea to the Village Board earlier this year. The board, many of whom remember Sheila, supported the project unanimously.
“We all knew it was important to do this, and I’m proud to be part of it,” Rubino said. “Sheila was very loved by the people in the village. This is a way to keep her memory alive.”
The memorial features a rock bubbler fountain and a plaque with Sheila’s graduation photo and a short inscription reflecting her life. A nearby bench invites visitors to sit and reflect. David and his family played a role in composing the plaque’s wording, ensuring it conveyed their sentiments.
“The village has spent time, emotional dedication, and funds to create this memorial,” David said. “I was just about in tears when I got the call about it. It reinforced that it was a good place to grow up.”
The dedication ceremony for the memorial will take place at 5:30 p.m. on Oct. 9 at Village Hall, followed by a reception. The event is expected to bring together family, friends, and community members who continue to honor Sheila’s life and legacy.
