Firefighters raised close to $10,000 this morning with a boot drive at several major Escondido intersections for missing teenager Amber Dubois.
The firefighters say the community support was overwhelming. "There was a lot of god bless Amber and a lot of them told us to tell the family they're thinking about them" said firefighter Ryan Vierra.
The money is going to help with the grassroots search effort being put together by Amber's parents and friends.
The number of volunteers on weekends is between 500 and 600 people, and donations, everything from a store front where the search efforts are headquartered to food and supplies, are growing.
But, after nearly a month Amber is still missing.
Maurice Dubois, Amber's Father, said he still cries himself to sleep every night in his hotel room and still finds the strength every morning to pull himself out of bed and begin a new day with the optimism he says is essential to finding his daughter.
"Once one of us starts breaking down, the other sees it, they start breaking down. It really does Amber no good if we're all sitting here crying all day," said Dubois.
Friday marks one month since Amber's disappearance.
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She was last seen in front of Escondido High School at 7:10 am before school on Friday February 13th.
Dubois said Friday March 13th will be difficult "tomorrow, there's not gonna be any chance of us not crying all day tomorrow."
Escondido Police and the FBI continue to investigate Amber's disappearance, but Maurice Dubois said tips aren't leading anywhere.
When asked if he feels closer to finding Amber today compared to the day she went missing, Maurice Dubois simply shook his head and said "No."
