About Us
About the International Alliance of Families of the Missing
The International Alliance of Families of the Missing (IAFM) has united families, advocates, and organizations across the globe in the shared belief that no family should search alone.
Our Mission
The International Alliance of Families of the Missing exists to ensure that every family facing the disappearance of a loved one has access to compassionate support, practical resources, and a global community that understands their journey.
We work at the intersection of crisis support, legal advocacy, and community building — bridging the gap between families in need and the organizations, governments, and networks that can help them find answers.
Our work is guided by the belief that the search for a missing person is not only a legal matter — it is a deeply human one. We honor the strength of every family who refuses to give up.
Compassion
We meet every family where they are, with warmth and without judgment.
Dignity
We uphold the dignity of every missing person and their family in all that we do.
Solidarity
We believe in the power of community — no family should carry this burden alone.
Action
We turn compassion into concrete support, resources, and advocacy.
Our Leadership
Our team brings together experts in human rights, crisis counseling, legal advocacy, and community organizing — united by a personal commitment to this cause.
Tara Elizabeth
Co-President
Tara Elizabeth is Co-President of the International Alliance of Families of the Missing (IAFM) and Co-Founder of Silence After Ukraine, a family-led support and advocacy community created to support families of foreign volunteers missing, killed or captured in Ukraine. Tara became part of a world she never expected to know when her son, Colby-Reece Dolman, was reported missing in Ukraine in May 2025. What followed was a deeply personal search for answers across military units, governments, law enforcement agencies and humanitarian organisations, often while trying to understand unfamiliar systems, terminology and processes at the same time. That experience showed Tara how isolating the search for a missing loved one can become, particularly when a family is trying to navigate systems across different countries. Alongside Stephanie Boyce-Williams, whose husband Alan is also missing in Ukraine, she co-founded Silence After Ukraine so that other families would have somewhere to turn for practical information, peer support and, perhaps most importantly, someone who understands what it means to live with unanswered questions. Her own experience continues to shape her work. Tara believes families should never simply be spoken about when decisions concerning their missing loved ones are being made they should have a place at the table. Through IAFM, she hopes to help build an international network where families can find one another, access trusted support and stand together with a stronger collective voice, regardless of nationality. For Tara, this work began with the search for her son, but it has grown into a commitment to ensure that no family facing the disappearance of someone they love has to navigate that journey alone.
Stephanie Boyce-Williams
Co-President
Stephanie Boyce-Williams is Co-President of the International Alliance of Families of the Missing (IAFM) and Co-Founder of Silence After Ukraine, a family-led support and advocacy community created to support families of foreign volunteers missing, killed or captured in Ukraine. Stephanie’s involvement in missing-person advocacy began in the most personal way possible when her husband, Alan, was reported missing in Ukraine in July 2025. Suddenly faced with trying to understand what had happened and where to turn next, she found herself navigating military structures, government departments, law enforcement agencies, humanitarian organisations and unfamiliar processes across international borders, often while trying to piece together incomplete or conflicting information. Living with that uncertainty gave Stephanie a firsthand understanding of how overwhelming and isolating the search for answers can become. Alongside Tara Elizabeth, whose son Colby-Reece Dolman is also missing in Ukraine, she co-founded Silence After Ukraine so that other families would have somewhere to turn for practical information, trusted signposting, peer support and people who genuinely understand what it means to live without answers. Her own experience has shaped a strong belief that families should be recognised as active participants in the search for their loved ones, with access to clear information, meaningful communication and a voice in the processes and decisions that affect them. Through IAFM, Stephanie hopes to strengthen the connection between families and the organisations working on missing-person cases, improve access to trusted information and support, and help create a stronger international network where families can stand together regardless of nationality. For Stephanie, the search for Alan remains deeply personal. But through that search, she has become committed to helping build something she wishes had existed when her own family first needed it — a clearer path, a stronger collective voice and a community where no family has to face the uncertainty alone.
SFC (Ret.) Michael Henshaw
Executive Chairman and Founder
Michael Henshaw is the Executive Chairman and Founder of the International Alliance of Families of the Missing (IAFM). He is a combat veteran and senior executive with more than 25 years of experience in military service, government leadership, and international operations. A U.S. Army Mortuary Affairs specialist, he has led recovery and identification missions for missing service members from World War II through today’s conflicts, including operations in Ukraine. His expertise in mass fatality management shaped global disaster responses to the 2004 South Asia Tsunami, the 2010 Haiti Earthquake, and Hurricane Dorian in 2019. After retiring from the Army, he directed National and State Veterans Cemeteries, earning Virginia’s first VA Operational Excellence Award, and contributed to FEMA’s Mass Fatality Response Guide. Mr. Henshaw is a recipient of two Bronze Star Medals, two Defense Meritorious Service Medals, five Meritorious Service Medals, and is an inductee of both the Honorary Order of Saint Martin and the Order of the Combat Spur.
Col. (Ret.) Vitali Ostapchuk
Vice President for International Operations
Col. (Ret.) Vitalii Ostapchuk serves as IAFM's President for International Operations and is Co-Founder and Director of Memory Way in Ukraine. A 25-year veteran of the Ukrainian Armed Forces, he spent 15 years in Defense Intelligence and later supported Ukraine’s Coordination Headquarters for the Treatment of Prisoners of War (KoordShtab). His experience spans military operations, intelligence, international coordination, and humanitarian affairs, with particular expertise in complex and sensitive operating environments. He completed specialized training at the U.S. Defense Language Institute and the Public Leadership Program at the University of San Francisco. At AMAG, Col. Ostapchuk helps lead international operations, partnerships, and coordination supporting efforts to account for the missing and bring answers to their families.
Patrick J. Richardson
Chief of Operations and Director of Philanthropy
Patrick (PJ) Richardson is IAFM's Chief of Operations and Director of Philanthropy, where he oversees domestic operations and leads the organization’s fundraising and donor engagement efforts. A seasoned executive with leadership experience across the nonprofit, manufacturing, export, and consulting sectors, he is also the Founder and President of The EXTOL Group, a consulting firm specializing in international humanitarian operations. PJ’s expertise in field logistics, mass fatality response, and global partnerships—shaped by work following 9/11 and major international disasters—provides IAFM with the reach and capacity to operate effectively in post-disaster and post-conflict environments worldwide.
Jane ("Mama Jane") Alieva
Director of Partnerships
Jane Alieva is a Ukrainian strategic communications leader and humanitarian advocate focused on justice, recovery, and long-term systems for children affected by war. As the founder of the Mama Jane Foundation, she leads international efforts addressing the abduction and reintegration of Ukrainian children, combining legal action, global advocacy, and trauma-informed recovery programs. Her work sits at the intersection of public leadership, policy influence, and crisis response - from co-developing international legal cases to launching global awareness campaigns such as “100 Words of Support,” which mobilizes voices worldwide in direct communication with affected children. She is being recommended for her ability to operate in high-pressure environments, shape narratives at a global level, and contribute to the development of long-term solutions addressing systemic human rights violations.
Our Partners
We work alongside leading international organizations, governments, and civil society groups to deliver support to families worldwide.
Asymmetric MIA Accounting Group - AMAG
Memory Way — Non-Government Organization
Mama Jane Foundation
Extol Group
TerraVie Foundation
Huffines Global Solutions