Adventures with Purpose
Youtube handleAdventureswithPurpose
Youtube display nameAdventures with Purpose
Youtube years active2018–present
Youtube subscribers3.42 million
Youtube views435 million
Stats update1 July 2025
Websiteadventureswithpurpose.com

Adventures with Purpose (AWP) is an American group of professional scuba divers who use underwater sonar imaging equipment and bathymetry mapping technology to locate missing persons and their vehicles in waterbodies. Originally focused on clean-up, their channel's focus was turned to missing persons cold cases after their accidental discovery of a missing person. The group documents their efforts on their YouTube channel.

Background

Adventures with Purpose was founded in Oregon in 2018 by Jared Leisek, who collected trash from rivers and lakes.[a][1][2] Doug Bishop, a diver and manager of a towing company, soon joined Leisek to assist in vehicle removal.[3] The group began as an environmental cleanup agency, removing cars that were polluting waterways.[4][5] After twice finding cars with missing people in them, they determined a need to look for people who had gone missing in or with their vehicles.[6]

The channel receives tip-offs and requests from the public through their social media accounts.[1] They do not pursue rewards from family or charge the families or police involved, but will not reject rewards if given.[7] AWP funds its searches through video views, subscribers, donations, and merchandise sales.[5]

On May 12, 2022, Leisek registered a new company, Underwater Investigations LLC, which now holds the rights to Adventures with Purpose.[8]

Search process

At the identified waterbody,[9] the team traverse the waters in small inflatable boats, scanning the bottom of the waterbody using sonar. Upon identifying areas of interest, they circle the area for further identification on their sonar displays before using a heavy-duty magnet to attach their line to the sunken vehicle. They mark the location with a buoy and then use divers to make a visual identification of the vehicle, retrieve a license plate, search for bodies, and prepare the vehicle and its contents for retrieval by police.[10]

In 2020, AWP threatened to sue for a $100,000 reward pledged by five anonymous donors for the discovery of Ethan Kazmerzak, who had disappeared in 2013.[11] The Kazmerzak family donated an undisclosed amount.[5]

In October 2022, the team had six members.[6] The following month, Leisek was accused of raping a 9-year-old female relative at age 16–17 in Utah in 1992. Several team members, including Bishop, diver Nick Rinn,[12] and lead videographer Joshua Cantu[13] subsequently left the team.[14][15] On January 5, 2023, Leisek was charged in Sanpete County, Utah.[16][17] Adventures with Purpose subsequently announced that they were on a 3-month tour with a new team of divers and filmmakers.[18]

On December 13, 2024, Underwater Investigations LLC filed a copyright infringement lawsuit against Cantu. Cantu alleged that the lawsuit stems from his posting behind-the-scenes videos of Adventures with Purpose before the formation of Underwater Investigations LLC. The case remains pending.[19][20]

Cases

The team usually deals with cold cases,[21] but they have also volunteered for searches in recent cases.[22] Certain recent cases may be incidental while searching the waterbody for a cold case.[23] As of August 2025, the group has solved 37 cases involving 39 missing persons.[23] AWP also sometimes cooperates with other teams with the same purpose, such as Exploring with Nug, Chaos Divers and Sunshine State Sonar.[24][25]

Cases solved
CaseNameAgeMissingFoundLocation
1Nathan Ashby[26]22July 31, 2019December 29, 2019Missouri River, Pinckney Township, Missouri
38.6606°N 91.2438°W[27]
2Timothy Robinson[28]56November 26, 2008May 26, 2020Willamette River, Milwaukie, Oregon
45.4433°N 122.6446°W[29]
3Nicholas Allen[30]17February 20, 2020October 1, 2020Yadkin River, Linwood, North Carolina
35.7231°N 80.3913°W[31]
4Ethan Kazmerzak[11]22September 15, 2013October 26, 2020Chapin, Iowa
42.80618°N 93.2178°W[32]
5Bill Simmons[33]57June 15, 2020January 26, 2021Cumberland River, Nashville, Tennessee
36.2451°N 86.7021°W[34]
6Antonio Amaro Lopez[35]57February 14, 2021February 17, 2021Columbia River, Portland, Oregon
45.591°N 122.5481°W[36]
7Tammy Goff[37]59July 12, 2018May 14, 2021Missouri River, Great Falls, Montana
47.3979°N 111.317°W[38]
8Richard Ritz[39]74September 13, 2020June 3, 2021Willamette River, Cathedral Park, Oregon
45.5871°N 122.7651°W[40]
9John Zarkowski[41]72September 4, 2021September 22, 2021Missouri River, Plattsmouth, Nebraska
41.0145°N 95.8685°W[42]
10Nadine Moses[43]84May 4, 2021September 25, 2021St. Clair River, Marine City, Michigan
42.7062°N 82.4965°W[44]
11Charles Fluharty[45]57October 19, 2014October 5, 2021Yellow Creek, Yellow Creek Township, Ohio
40.5732°N 80.6671°W[46]
12Carey Mae Parker[47]23March 17, 1991October 16, 2021Lake Tawakoni, Hawk Cove, Texas
32.8678°N 96.0703°W[48]
13Thomas Thornton[49]72March 24, 2021October 24, 2021Toledo Bend Reservoir, Shelby County, Texas
31.7514°N 93.8436°W[50]
14Samantha Hopper[51]19September 11, 1998October 26, 2021Lake Dardanelle, Russellville, Arkansas
35.3211°N 93.147°W[52]
Courtney Holt1
15Jeff Shepherd[53]30March 14, 2018December 5, 2021Strunk, Kentucky
36.6466°N 84.4332°W[54]
16Stephanie Torres[55]42December 21, 2017January 19, 2022Brazos River, Waco, Texas
31.5825°N 97.1517°W[56]
17Annie Lee Hampton[57]66October 10, 2019January 28, 2022Bear Creek Lake, Marianna, Arkansas
34.709°N 90.694°W[58]
18Margaret "Jan" Shupe Smith[59]59April 2, 2021February 2, 2022Lakeland, Florida
28.1387°N 81.947°W[60]
19James Amabile[61]38December 4, 2003March 19, 2022Darby Creek, Ridley Township, Pennsylvania
39.8705°N 75.313°W[62]
20Dedrick Smith[63]26October 4, 2006April 1, 2022Winston Lake, Winston-Salem, North Carolina
36.1159°N 80.2028°W[64]
21Matthew "Jed" Hall[65]16January 22, 2018May 1, 2022Snake River, Idaho Falls, Idaho
43.5046°N 112.049°W[66]
22Ralph Brown[67]77May 16, 2021May 13, 2022Willamette River, Newberg, Oregon
45.2853°N 122.9681°W[68]
23Kiely Rodni[69]16August 6, 2022August 21, 2022Prosser Creek Reservoir, Truckee, California
39.3829°N 120.1581°W[70]
24Donald Messier[71]34October 15, 2006October 5, 2022Winooski River, Duxbury, Vermont
44.3307°N 72.7582°W[72]
25Tod DiMinno[73]54September 30, 2022October 8, 2022Allegheny River, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania[74]
26Dale Nicholson[75]61December 10, 2016January 23, 2023River Derwent, Tasmania, Australia
42.777592°S 147.060017°E[76]
27Jacob VanZant[77]24February 17, 2023April 15, 2023San Joaquin River, Stockton, California
38.060259°N 121.499616°W[78]
28Rochelle Stanfield[79]84March 6, 2023May 5, 2023Mississippi River, Tiptonville, Tennessee
36.36639°N 89.506233°W[80]
29Maureen Sherman[81]47May 1, 1985January 5, 2024Miami, Florida
30Kareem Tisdale[82]30December 16, 2005January 6, 2024Sunrise, Florida
31Arnel Nagal Narvaiz[83]36July 1, 1994April 13, 2024Sutton Slough, California
32Karmen Neilson[84]62November 20, 2016July 24, 2024Sacramento River, Sacramento, California
33Eddie Pullin[85]27October 19, 2024November 9, 2024Columbia River, Portland, Oregon
34Bradley Benford[86]59May 18, 2024February 1, 2025San Jacinto River, Cleveland, Texas
35Robert Long[87]62December 21, 2010July 7, 2025
36Yvon Guévin[88]75July 6, 2014July 11, 2025Saint-François River, Canada
37Whisper Owen[89]36July 15, 2025August 17, 2025Canal, San Joaquin County, California
Sandra McCarty8 months

Footnotes

  1. ^ The AWP YouTube channel was registered in July 2018[90]

References

  1. ^ Weinman, Steve (March 22, 2022). "Body-recovery divers crack 20th cold case - Divernet". Divernet. Retrieved November 3, 2022.
  2. ^ "Oregon divers travel across US to help solve cold cases". Oregon Public Broadcasting. Retrieved 2025-09-17.
  3. ^ Williams, Chris (May 9, 2022). "Adventures with Purpose: Volunteer dive team solves nearly 25 missing-person cold cases — and counting". Fox 2 Detroit. Retrieved November 3, 2022.
  4. ^ Woodruff, Bob (2022). "Video YouTubers, Adventures with Purpose, help crack a missing persons case". ABC News. Retrieved November 3, 2022.
  5. ^ Kesslen, Ben (August 23, 2022). "Adventures with Purpose dive team, who found Kiely Rodni, have solved 23 other cold cases". New York Post. Retrieved November 3, 2022.
  6. ^ Spocchia, Gino (August 22, 2022). "Adventures with Purpose: Who are the divers who discovered body in search for Kiely Rodni?". Yahoo! Sports. Retrieved November 3, 2022.
  7. ^ Shaddox, Rowena (August 22, 2022). "Adventures with Purpose details search for Kiely Rodni". FOX40. Archived August 23, 2022 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved November 3, 2022.
  8. ^ "UNDERWATER INVESTIGATIONS LLC". UNDERWATER INVESTIGATIONS LLC. Bizapedia. Retrieved January 9, 2025.
  9. ^ Martinez, Jeremiah (August 22, 2022). "What is Adventures with Purpose, the team that says it found Kiely Rodni's body and car?". FOX40. Archived August 22, 2022 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved November 3, 2022.
  10. ^ "How dive teams use advanced technology to search Pittsburgh's rivers for the missing". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. October 12, 2022. Retrieved November 3, 2022.
  11. ^ Joens, Philip (December 15, 2020). "Dive team that found missing Iowa man's body might sue for $100,000 reward". Reno Gazette Journal. Retrieved November 3, 2022.
  12. ^ "Nick Rinn Departure with AWP". Nick Rinn. November 9, 2022. – via YouTube.
  13. ^ "My Resignation with AWP". Josh Cantu. November 8, 2022. – via YouTube.
  14. ^ Hice, Jim (November 15, 2022). "Founding member of well known search and recovery team charged with rape of child". KCEN-TV. Archived November 16, 2022 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved November 16, 2022.
  15. ^ Marks, Andrea (November 17, 2022). "True Crime YouTuber to Plead Not Guilty to 1992 Child Rape Charges". Rolling Stone. Retrieved December 20, 2022.
  16. ^ "Sanpete County Sheriff's Department Jail Bookings". Retrieved 11 January 2023.
  17. ^ Luperon, Alberto (November 8, 2022). "Adventures with Purpose Founder Charged with Raping a Child in Alleged 1992 Incidents". Law & Crime. Retrieved November 16, 2022.
  18. ^ "AWP 2023 Winter Search has officially begun". Retrieved 8 January 2023. – via YouTube.
  19. ^ "He Tried to Silence Me.". Josh Cantu. Retrieved January 9, 2025. – via YouTube
  20. ^ "You Deserve An Update". Josh Cantu. Retrieved January 9, 2025. – via YouTube
  21. ^ Stanish, Erika (October 9, 2022). "Helping families find closure: Dive team searches for information on missing person cases". CBS News. Retrieved November 3, 2022.
  22. ^ Romero, Dennis (August 22, 2022). "Kiely Rodni case: Body found near the last location of missing teen". NBC News. Retrieved November 3, 2022.
  23. ^ "Missing Harmony man found in river remembered as 'caring,' loving father". CBS News. October 10, 2022. Retrieved October 26, 2022.
  24. ^ Denis, Alex (December 2, 2021). "Youtuber finds car belonging to TN teen missing for 2 decades". WKRN News 2. Archived August 15, 2022 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved November 10, 2022.
  25. ^ "YouTube diving group helps Pittsburgh police after finding body in Allegheny River". WPXI. October 9, 2022. Retrieved November 10, 2022.
  26. ^ Cavallier, Andrea (December 31, 2019). "Human remains, truck recovered from Missouri River in search for missing Nathaniel Ashby". NBC News. Retrieved November 1, 2022.
  27. ^ Solved Missing Persons Case... Bringing Closure for Nathan's Family. Adventures with Purpose. January 10, 2020. pp. 00:13:48. Retrieved November 3, 2022.
  28. ^ Smithers, Dominic (March 18, 2021). "Man Found In Car 75 Feet Under Water Solving 12-Year Missing Person Case". LADbible. Retrieved November 1, 2022.
  29. ^ SOLVED 12-Year-Old Missing Person Case (Timothy Robinson). Adventures with Purpose. June 5, 2020. pp. 00:12:57. Retrieved November 3, 2022.
  30. ^ Fowler, Hayley (October 13, 2020). "Deputy was 'rude' to family of missing teen after body found. NC sheriff apologizes". Charlotte Observer
  31. ^ SOLVED 8-Month-Old Missing Person Case (Nicholas Allen). Adventures with Purpose. October 9, 2020. pp. 00:26:27. Retrieved November 3, 2022.
  32. ^ SOLVED 7-Year-Old Missing Person Case.. (Ethan Kazmerzak). Adventures with Purpose. October 9, 2020. pp. 00:25:24. Retrieved November 3, 2022.
  33. ^ Horan, Kyle (January 26, 2021). "Body of missing man found in car in the Cumberland". News Channel 5. Retrieved November 1, 2022.
  34. ^ SOLVED 7-Month-Old Missing Persons Cold Case (BILL SIMMONS). Adventures with Purpose. April 9, 2021. pp. 00:11:41. Retrieved November 3, 2022.
  35. ^ Miller, Joshua Rhett (February 19, 2021). "Driver who plunged off bridge ID'd as Oregon dad Antonio Amaro-Lopez: cops". New York Post. Retrieved November 1, 2022.
  36. ^ SOLVED 3-Day-Old Missing Person Case.. (Antonio Amaro-Lopez). Adventures with Purpose. February 26, 2021. pp. 00:09:56. Retrieved November 3, 2022.
  37. ^ Rosenbaum, Traci (May 27, 2021). "Cascade County Sheriff IDs body found in river as Tammy Goff". Great Falls Tribune. Retrieved November 1, 2022.
  38. ^ SOLVED: Found Tammy Goff (Ep. 4) Missing 3-Years Underwater. Adventures with Purpose. July 2, 2021. pp. 00:32:39. Retrieved November 3, 2022.
  39. ^ Wolford, Brooke (June 4, 2021). "Private dive team finds body of grandpa missing for months in river, Oregon police say". The News Tribune. Retrieved November 1, 2022.
  40. ^ SOLVED: Missing 9-Months Underwater (RICHARD RITZ FOUND). Adventures with Purpose. July 30, 2021. pp. 00:14:30. Retrieved November 3, 2022.
  41. ^ "Body of missing Plattsmouth man found inside SUV recovered from river". KOLN. Retrieved November 1, 2022.
  42. ^ SOLVED: Missing 72-year-old Marine Veteran Found Underwater in SUV (John Zarkowski). Adventures with Purpose. December 10, 2021. pp. 00:24:05. Retrieved November 3, 2022.
  43. ^ Kelly, Dane (September 26, 2021). "Vehicle of woman missing since May found in St. Clair River with body inside". WDIV. Retrieved November 1, 2022.
  44. ^ SOLVED 84-Year-Old Missing Person Case.. (Nadine Moses). Adventures with Purpose. November 25, 2021. pp. 00:14:36. Retrieved November 3, 2022.
  45. ^ Mosca, Zach (October 8, 2021). "Divers find body of East Liverpool man missing for seven years". WFMJ. Retrieved November 1, 2022.
  46. ^ SOLVED: Charles Fluharty Brought Home 7 Years Underwater Wait Is Over. Chaos Divers. November 19, 2021. pp. 00:00:01. Retrieved November 3, 2022.
  47. ^ Kellar, Brad (October 16, 2021). "Family: Remains of Carey Mae Parker located". Yahoo! News. Retrieved November 1, 2022.
  48. ^ SOLVED: We Found Their Moms Car 30 Years Later... (Carey Mae Parker COLD CASE). Adventures with Purpose. May 7, 2021. pp. 00:22:18. Retrieved November 3, 2022.
  49. ^ KTRE Digital Media Staff (October 25, 2021). "Body found at Huxley Bay believed to be veteran missing since March". KLTV. Retrieved November 1, 2022.
  50. ^ SOLVED: Vietnam Veteran (Thomas Thornton) Found 7-months after Crashing Car into Lake. Adventures with Purpose. December 24, 2021. pp. 00:10:35. Retrieved November 3, 2022.
  51. ^ O'Connell, Oliver (October 29, 2021). "Human remains found in car more than 20 years after mother and daughter went missing". The Independent. Retrieved October 31, 2022.
  52. ^ SOLVED: Missing 23-years Underwater (Samantha Hopper, 22-month-old Daughter Courtney, Unborn Baby). Adventures with Purpose. December 31, 2021. pp. 00:21:05. Retrieved November 3, 2022.
  53. ^ Stunson, Mike (December 6, 2021). "Human remains found in submerged truck of man missing since 2018, Kentucky officials say". Lexington Herald-Leader
  54. ^ Cold Case SOLVED: 30 Year Old Jeff Shepherd Found In Pond 3 1/2 Years Later. Chaos Divers. December 17, 2021. pp. 00:10:28. Retrieved November 3, 2022.
  55. ^ Gamboa, Suzanne; Davis, Lindsey; Hylton, Antonia (January 19, 2022). "Cold case divers find missing woman's vehicle in Texas river". NBC News. Retrieved November 1, 2022.
  56. ^ SOLVED: Missing 4-years Underwater (Stephanie Torres). Adventures with Purpose. February 4, 2022. pp. 00:14:30. Retrieved November 4, 2022.
  57. ^ Li, Johanna (January 28, 2022). "Remains of Missing Woman Found at Bottom of Arkansas Lake". Inside Edition. Retrieved November 1, 2022.
  58. ^ SOLVED: Missing 2-years Underwater (Miss Annie Lee Hampton). Adventures with Purpose. February 4, 2022. pp. 00:24:50. Retrieved March 25, 2022.
  59. ^ Jackson, Amanda (February 7, 2022). "The moment YouTube divers crack a missing person cold case". 7NEWS. Retrieved November 1, 2022.
  60. ^ SOLVED: Missing 10-months Underwater (Margaret "Jan" Shupe Smith). Adventures with Purpose. April 5, 2022. pp. 01:08:20. Retrieved November 3, 2022.
  61. ^ Reardon, Sophie (March 29, 2022). "Body found in Pennsylvania creek identified as James Amabile, who had been missing since 2003". CBS News. Retrieved November 1, 2022.
  62. ^ SOLVED: Underwater Recovery 19-years Later [Ep 3] James Amabile. Adventures with Purpose. May 19, 2022. pp. 00:00:28. Retrieved November 4, 2022.
  63. ^ Brown, Maggie & Leah, Heather (April 5, 2022). "Car of NC man reported missing 16 years ago found in Winston-Salem lake". WRAL. Retrieved November 1, 2022.
  64. ^ SOLVED 16-Year-Old Missing Person Case.. (Dedrick Smith). Adventures with Purpose. June 7, 2022. pp. 00:31:23. Retrieved November 3, 2022.
  65. ^ "Remains found in vehicle are those of Jed Hall's, police say". East Idaho News. May 5, 2022. Retrieved November 1, 2022.
  66. ^ SOLVED 16-Year Old (Jed Hall) Missing 4-years... We FOUND him in Under 20 minutes!. Adventures with Purpose. July 15, 2022. pp. 00:45:35. Retrieved November 4, 2022.
  67. ^ "Human remains found in submerged car belonging to former Oregon mayor who went missing one year ago". CBS News. May 16, 2022. Retrieved November 1, 2022.
  68. ^ SOLVED: Missing 12-months Underwater (Ralph Brown) DANGEROUS RECOVERY. Adventures with Purpose. June 30, 2022. pp. 00:53:30. Retrieved November 4, 2022.
  69. ^ Collman, Ashley (August 22, 2022). "Body found in car submerged in California reservoir is likely missing teen Kiely Rodni, police say". Insider. Retrieved November 1, 2022.
  70. ^ How We FOUND Kiely Rodni: MURDER or ACCIDENT?. Adventures with Purpose. September 2, 2022. pp. 00:34:43. Retrieved November 3, 2022.
  71. ^ Smith, Cam (October 5, 2022). "Mystery solved? Missing man's truck found at bottom of river". WCAX. Retrieved November 1, 2022.
  72. ^ Pt2: SOLVED Cold Case 16-YEARS Later (Donnie Messier). Adventures with Purpose. October 28, 2022. pp. 00:30:48. Retrieved November 4, 2022.
  73. ^ "Police pull car with body inside from Allegheny River near Acrisure Stadium". CBS News. October 8, 2022. Retrieved November 1, 2022.
  74. ^ WE FOUND Tod DiMinno - Breaking News Livestream. Adventures with Purpose. October 9, 2022. Retrieved November 4, 2022.
  75. ^ "Tragic riddle of car in river". January 24, 2023.
  76. ^ SOLVED 6-Year-Old Missing Person Case.. (Dale Nicholson). Adventures with Purpose. July 21, 2023. pp. 00:10:20.
  77. ^ "Dive team finds body of missing Stockton man Jacob VanZant in San Joaquin River". CBS News. April 18, 2023. Retrieved April 24, 2023.
  78. ^ WE FOUND Jacob VanZant - Breaking News Livestream. Adventures with Purpose. April 15, 2023. pp. 00:19:07. Retrieved April 24, 2023.
  79. ^ Adams, Eve (May 6, 2023). "Rochelle Stanfield of Tiptonville, TN, found dead in Mississippi River". SNBC13. Retrieved 31 July 2023.
  80. ^ SOLVED: 💔 Grandma Missing 60-Days Underwater... The Case of Rochelle Stanfield. Adventures with Purpose. July 14, 2023. pp. 00:10:20. Retrieved July 31, 2023.
  81. ^ Crowley, Kinsey (January 9, 2024). "Human remains believed to belong to woman missing since 1985 found in car in Miami canal". USA Today. Retrieved 27 February 2024.
  82. ^ Livingston, Layron (February 12, 2024). "Authorities working to ID remains found in submerged vehicle near Sawgrass Mills Mall". WPLG
  83. ^ Robles, Sergio (April 22, 2024). "Human remains, vehicle pulled from waterway may be linked to Stockton man who went missing in 1994". FOX40. Retrieved May 26, 2024.
  84. ^ "BREAKING NEWS: 2 Cold Cases Solved by AWP and Sunshine State Sonar"
  85. ^ "SOLVED: 27 y/o Eddie and His Dog Sassy Found After Tragic Seizure"
  86. ^ "Missing man's vehicle found submerged in San Jacinto River, search for his body continues". Bluebonnet News. 2025-02-04. Retrieved 2025-10-31.
  87. ^ Cergol, Greg (2025-07-16). "Remains found in submerged Long Island SUV ID'd as man missing nearly 15 years". NBC New York. Retrieved 2025-10-31.
  88. ^ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KmDHMeY1qLY
  89. ^ "CA family still looking for answers after missing mother and baby found dead in canal". ABC7 San Francisco. 2025-08-19. Retrieved 2025-10-31.
  90. ^ "Adventures with Purpose - YouTube". Adventures with Purpose. Retrieved November 3, 2022. – via YouTube