Wife: Radio host `not coming back'
SAN FRANCISCO >> Six days after popular Bay Area radio host Jeffrey “JV” Vandergrift mysteriously disappeared from his San Francisco home, his wife put out a statement saying new evidence suggests he “will not be coming back.”
In a letter to the community posted on social media, Vandergrift's wife, Natasha Yi, thanked supporters for concern and efforts in helping find her husband, and said he's still officially considered a missing person.
“JV and I have always considered this community part of our family, so I want to let you know that personal information has recently been discovered that leads us to believe JV will not be coming back,” Yi wrote. “I tell you this with incredible pain and sadness in my heart.”
Yi said police have asked her to keep specific details to “immediate family only.”
“Please forgive my silence during this time. My heart is utterly broken and the pain feels unbearable,” she wrote.
She added that “no foul play” is suspected in his disappearance and that the San Francisco Police Department investigation is continuing. Police have not released new information since Feb. 24, when they announced he was missing and considered atrisk, and encouraged anyone with information on his whereabouts to call in.
Vandergrift, a longtime morning show host at Wild 94.9, co-founded and co-hosted the popular Doghouse show during the early 1990s. The show soared in popularity, mostly due to on-air antics, stunts, pranks and raunchy humor. After the Doghouse moved to New York and eventually disbanded, Vandergrift returned to Wild 94.9 to host “The JV Show.” After his return to the Bay Area, Vandergrift reunited with his co-host on the Doghouse, Elvis “Dan” Lay, for an AM talk show and recurring podcast.
Last year, after a hiatus that spanned several months, Vandergrift revealed publicly he'd been diagnosed with Lyme disease in 2021 and had suffered greatly through brain fog and other severe symptoms. He said on air that his illness had gone undiagnosed for a lengthy period before he was advised to get tested for Lyme disease.
In his April return to the airwaves, he also openly discussed dealing with suicidal ideations, but said he was working to return to work full time. Yi's statement called his two years with the disease “physical torture.”
Despite the hiatus, Vandergrift stayed fairly active on social media. One of his final Twitter posts, in typical fashion, was to solicit donations for a listener going through a personal tragedy.
Vandergrift, 54, was last seen around 10 p.m. Feb. 23 near his home in the 200 block of King Street in San Francisco. Earlier this week, Wild 94.9 put out a statement saying there has been no activity on his cellphone or credit cards since his disappearance.
In his last Instagram post, edited to the past tense around the time of his disappearance, Vandergrift wrote, “thank you for a wonderful life — filled with joy, laughs, pain, and struggle.”
“It's been a great journey. Your support and prayers meant the world,” the post says. “Keep shinin' love, compassion, understanding, truth, forgiveness, peace, and hope for others.”
If you or someone you know is struggling with feelings of depression or suicidal thoughts, the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline offers free, roundthe-clock support, information and resources for help. Reach the lifeline at 988 or see the SuicidePreventionLifeline.org.