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[Update: Fri., Oct. 17, 2025, 9:00pm] Lompoc Unified School District has released a statement on 9-year-old Melodee Buzzard’s disappearance. In the October 17 press release, the district said that Melodee’s mother, Ashee Buzzard first enrolled Melodee in the school district in August 2025. The statement said Buzzard brought Melodee to Mission Valley Independent School to begin the registration process.
Lompoc Unified said that Mission Valley is an independent study program offered through the school district. Children learn lessons at home and parents coordinate with accredited staff. According to Mission Valley’s website, students and staff meet weekly.
The district said in the press release that Mission Valley follows a procedure wherein if a student does not pick up assignments, they are referred back to their local school, which then contacts the family to enroll the child. The district said if the student does not begin to attend school, then the school follows mandatory truancy procedures such as phone calls, letters, emails and home visits. Then, if the school still cannot reach the student, the school contacts law enforcement.
No additional details were given on the timeline of this process for Melodee in the press release.
“We are doing everything within our authority to support this investigation, including providing records and coordinating with the Sheriff’s Office,” Lompoc Unified wrote.
The district said it was not able to share this information sooner, at the request of law enforcement.
[Update: Fri., Oct. 17, 2025, 12:05pm] Santa Barbara County Sheriff’s detectives have confirmed that the missing 9-year-old Lompoc girl Melodee Buzzard was seen as recently as August 2025, according to an October 17 press release. The office said it used information supplied by Lompoc Unified School District to determine this timeline. Melodee’s mother, Ashlee Buzzard, has been uncooperative, according to the press release.
“Lompoc Unified School District deserves credit for recognizing that something wasn’t right, reaching out, and continuing to assist with this investigation” said Lieutenant Chris Gotschall from the Criminal Investigations Division. “This important update helps narrow a significant gap in the timeline of when she was last known to be seen and because of that, we’re closer to understanding what happened to Melodee.”
[Original Story] A 9-year-old Lompoc child, Melodee Buzzard, is at-risk and missing. On Tuesday, the Santa Barbara County Sheriff’s Office began investigating Melodee’s disappearance after a school administrator reported her prolonged absence, according to a press release. The sheriff’s office says Melodee was enrolled in a homeschool program as of October 2024.
The Sheriff’s Office says deputies visited the home of Melodee’s mother, Ashlee Buzzard, on the 500 block of Mars Avenue in Lompoc. They said they did not find the child there, received no clear explanation of where Melodee was, and cannot confirm any recent sightings of her. The last verified contact with Melodee was a year ago, the Sheriff’s Office said, and her most recent photograph was taken two years ago.
The Sheriff’s office asks that anyone who may have seen Melodee or had contact with her any time in the past year come forward — and that even small details are helpful. You can reach detectives at (805) 681-4150. You can submit an anonymous tip at (805) 681-4171 or at SBSheriff.org.
