DANVILLE, Ky. (LEX 18) — It's every person's worse nightmare when a loved one goes missing, and one Boyle County husband has been searching for his missing wife for almost a week.
Tomorrow will mark an official week since 53-year-old Jennifer Hawkins went missing. It's been a gut-wrenching week for the Hawkins family as they wait to uncover any leads surrounding the disappearance of Jennifer.
According to her husband, Derek Hawkins, she was last seen leaving the Baptist Health Lexington hospital in blue scrubs on Tuesday, Nov. 26. Her vehicle was found at a McDonalds off Perryville Road in Danville on Thursday, Nov. 28 afternoon without her phone or purse inside.
Derek and Jennifer have been married for 32 years. Derek says the duo has had their ups and downs, but at the end of the day, they stay together because they love each other. The couple has six kids together, three living at home.
Derek admits he's unsure why Jennifer was at the Lexington hospital to begin with. However, Jennifer underwent surgery a week ago and was battling an infection with spasms following her surgery. Derek believes her visit to Baptist Health could be related to the infection.
"So my wife works nights. She normally comes home around 8:30-ish in the morning. I didn't see her before work on Wednesday night, Wednesday morning. Then she wasn't home whenever our kids got home from school 3:30 or four o'clock," explains Derek. Jennifer has been a nurse at the Federal Prison Medical Center in Lexington for more than 10 years.
"And then they found her car at Danville McDonalds Thursday afternoon. I got a call Thanksgiving day about five o'clock that they had found her car here. So somehow her car got back to Danville, but we haven't heard from her and haven't seen her which is not like her," said Derek.
Jennifer is also deaf and wears hearing aids. Derek fears her hearing aids may not be working anymore. Whenever he calls her phone, it goes directly to voicemail.
"If you know who my wife is with, if you know where she's at. If you know anything about where she could- where she might be," said Derek. "Just contact the Danville police department and just reach out to them and say we know she's okay. Have her call her family, help her call her family. Whatever it needs to be just to make sure she's alive and okay."
If you believe you may have spotted Jennifer or any information to help locate her, please contact the Danville Police Department.
