Cheryl was last seen walking to a friend's house in her hometown of Secane, Pennsylvania on July 12, 1977. She never arrived as expected and has not been seen again. She lived on Chipmunk Lane at the time of her disappearance.

Following Cheryl's disappearance, authorities got tips that she'd been murdered by members of a motorcycle gang and dumped in Tinicum Marsh. Six other local girls between 15 and 19 years old were murdered in the 1970s and some of them were found in the marsh; all had ties to biker gangs. Cheryl was dating David Thompson at the time of her disappearance, and she may have gone to see him that night. Although he was not a biker game member, in 1978, Thompson was convicted of conspiracy and assault in connection with the fatal beating of a member of the Warlocks motorcycle club, and sentenced to 6 to 23 months in prison. Cheryl didn't have direct ties to any motorcycle clubs, but in addition to her connection with Thompson, one of her friends was a long-time associate of another biker gang, the Pagans.

Cheryl's mother stated her daughter was going through a rebellious phase at the time of her disappearance and had run away several times, but she would always call home to say she was okay. After her July 1977 disappearance, she was never heard from again. Her case remains unsolved and foul play is suspected. There has been no sign of Cheryl since 1977.