Breakout Underground

A Wedding Dress for Van Kress Beauty

Teresa Gunther

One of America's richest and most beautiful heiresses is officially off the market. Today, it was announced that Victoria Van Kress, granddaughter of real estate and copper tycoon, Martin Van Kress, has become engaged to her boyfriend, James Smith. The two have been rumored to be dating since September with their first public outing only two months ago in November. In this CinderFella story, Smith, an accountant from a modest upbringing, is going to be marrying into one of the most powerful families in the country. Long dubbed American Royalty, the Van Kress family built their fortune on the copper industry of Chile, and it has since burgeoned into a sprawling real estate empire with holdings in eighteen different countries.

Van Kress Charity Helps Every Family But Theirs

J. T. Milton

Christmas came early this year for the Sutton family. Tears of joy were the order of the day as Victoria Van Kress reunited Mr. and Mrs. Carl Sutton of Ohio with their son, Tyler, three days before Christmas. It's been a trying year for the family. Tyler, 16, ran away from home eight months ago, and his parents have been desperately searching for him ever since. They'd all but given up hope when Carl reached out to For Love of Lydia, a charity that works to reunite families. Their plight caught the attention of heiress Victoria Van Kress, who vowed to help them.

A decade ago Victoria's cousin, Lydia Van Kress, ran away from home. The family has all but given up hope of ever finding her. They founded the charity For Love of Lydia to help other families find lost loved ones. They know firsthand the grief and anxiety caused by this kind of separation. Victoria has often said, "I have never given up on the dream of hugging my cousin again one day," when asked about her work with the charity. "I don't want others to have to live through the same years of uncertainty that my family has."

Lydia ran away from home when she was seventeen. She and Victoria were a year apart in age and always very close. Victoria is the granddaughter of real estate mogul and copper empire founder Martin Van Kress. Lydia is the daughter of Leo Van Kress, Martin's nephew. Ten years ago, Lydia left the family home suddenly. After her father discovered that she stole his car, he called the police because he was worried that she might be intoxicated and was afraid she might hurt herself or someone else. The police found the car half an hour later crashed into a light pole. There was no sign of the driver. They scoured area hospitals looking for her, but Lydia never turned up. To this day the charity still gets dozens of calls each year from people who think they've seen Lydia in different parts of the country. Although the family follows up on every single lead, Victoria admits that the search sometimes seems futile.

Someday Lydia Van Kress might come home; until then, Victoria will keep looking for her and will keep helping other families in similar circumstances. The Sutton family, for one, is very grateful.

The New Normal at Copperhead Mine

Kenneth Ruiz

Life Still Not Back to Normal One Year After the Collapse of the Copperhead Mine in Chile In a small village in Chile, Alberto Contreras sits outside his house in the morning and stares vacantly as all the other men go to work. He is one of only two who survived the terrible Copperhead mine collapse last year. Although, as his wife, Isidora, points out, her husband never really came home. The Copperhead mine is one of the largest underground copper mines in the world and is owned by billionaire Martin Van Kress. A year ago, an explosion at the mine caused a cave-in that trapped twelve workers and killed five outright. It took two days for rescue crews to reach the men who were trapped inside. At the time, only Alberto and his cousin Rodrigo Contreras were still alive. Both suffered from multiple broken bones and dehydration. Four months later, Rodrigo was able to return to work; Alberto was not so lucky.

Alberto suffered an injury to his brain that rendered him incapable of performing all but the most basic of life functions. His haunted eyes seem to wish to impart a warning to all the men who troop past him that they could end up sharing his fate.

The cave-in raised serious issues about mining safety in Copperhead as well as across Chile. Officials promised a full investigation into the cave-in and the blast that precipitated it. One year later there is still no official report detailing what happened there. Moreover, Joaquin Soto, the mine's foreman, who disappeared the day of the accident, is still missing. The mine is open and men keep going to work, extracting the copper that makes the area so famous. But for Alberto and Isidora, who are still waiting for answers, life will never be the same.