Pitchanan “Noona”, 12, Missing in Si Racha — Last Seen on Red‑White Honda Wave

On a humid morning in Si Racha, a small motorcycle kick-started more than a routine errand — it became the last confirmed sighting of a child that a family still desperately hopes to find. Twelve-year-old Pitchanan, known affectionately as Noona, left her home on July 29 on a red-and-white Honda Wave 110i after receiving 300 baht from her father. She told relatives she was going to withdraw the money from an ATM near a convenience store. She never returned.

The plea now comes from her 63-year-old grandmother, Daeng, who has turned to the public and the press for help. With the calm stubbornness of someone who has spent decades caring for others, Daeng has been searching every day since the disappearance, knocking on doors, visiting places where a young girl might hide or be taken, and retracing the route to the ATM again and again. She filed an official missing-person report at Si Racha Police Station on August 4, but there has been no meaningful update, and no trace of Noona has surfaced.

Every detail matters when a child goes missing. The motorcycle — a red-and-white Honda Wave 110i —, the small amount of cash, the intended destination by a convenience-store ATM, and the family’s own schedule that day form the slender thread investigators and loved ones are following. Daeng initially thought Noona might have ridden to her father’s lodging on a nearby banana plantation, a familiar stop in the family’s daily life, but a search there turned up empty.

“She was supposed to go and withdraw money,” Daeng told reporters, her voice steady but edged with worry. “After that, nothing. No calls. No messages. No sign.” The grandmother also suspects the worst-case scenario many families fear: that Noona might have been involved in a motorcycle accident and is now in a hospital, unable to contact her family. It’s a heartbreaking, practical worry — small children on motorcycles are a dangerous reality on Thai roads — and one reason why the family is urging anyone with information, however small, to come forward.

In cases like this, social media often becomes the megaphone a family needs. Daeng has appealed to news outlets and community groups to spread the word, sharing a photo posted on Facebook by อธิบดี บุญชารี to make Noona’s face familiar to more people across Chon Buri and beyond. Every share, every mention increases the chances someone will recognize the child, the motorcycle, or remember seeing her that afternoon.

There are no guarantees, and every passing day lowers the odds — but the family’s daily search has not been in vain. It has kept the case alive in public view and maintained pressure on authorities to look for answers. Daeng’s steadfast presence at the edges of this story keeps hope from eroding entirely; she circles familiar streets, revisits likely locations, and talks to neighbors and commuters who might have noticed the little Honda Wave or a scared and hungry child.

Nearby, another incident this past week offered a reminder of how children can disappear from sight yet be found in surprising places. In Chiang Mai, three girls aged seven to nine slipped out of a school dormitory. Security cameras filmed the trio walking along a road with umbrellas in hand. Teachers first thought the children were heading home, but they weren’t. The girls were later found hiding in a cemetery near the school — reportedly because they were hungry and went looking for food. Locals spotted them and alerted authorities, and the girls were recovered safe. That episode underscores how vulnerable young children can be and how quickly a community response can make the difference between tragedy and reunion.

While the Chiang Mai case ended in relief, Noona’s disappearance remains unresolved. The contrasts between the two stories are stark: one ended with hungry children found by locals; the other is a family waiting for any clue that could point them to a hospital room, a roadside accident, a new guardian, or the safe return of a frightened child. The uncertainty is agonizing.

If you were in Si Racha on July 29 and remember seeing a red-and-white Honda Wave 110i, a young girl of about 12 near an ATM or convenience store, or anything that could help, please contact Si Racha Police Station or share the photo and details circulating on social media. Even the smallest observation — a partial licence plate, a direction the bike was heading, or a memory of a child talking to an adult — could be the missing piece that leads investigators to Noona.

For now, Daeng’s search goes on: a daily ritual of hope and determination. Communities that rally, share information, and keep an eye out for the vulnerable are often the ones that bring children home. Please look closely at shared photos, keep an eye out on local hospital wards, and pass this story on. A child’s safety sometimes hinges on a neighbor’s memory or a stranger’s kindness.

Photo credit: Facebook/อธิบดี บุญชารี