Family searching for missing members with doomsday beliefs

IDAHO FALLS — An Arizona family is desperate for their loved ones to return home after they abruptly bought thousands of dollars of survival gear, boarded a plane for Idaho and cut off all communication because they believe the Second Coming of Jesus Christ is imminent.

At the center of the situation is 16-year-old Blaze Thibaudeau, who has been reported missing to law enforcement and may be in danger, according to his father, Ben Thibaudeau.

“They see him as a Davidic servant (chosen individual) who plays a significant role in the Savior’s return. They feel they needed to take him to an undisclosed location where he would receive his calling and understand his role in the Second Coming,” Ben said. “I fear for his safety, especially if my son is contentious, rebellious or belligerent. I fear that my brother-in-law would restrain him or do something that would incapacitate him.”

Blaze is with his mother, Spring Thibaudeau; his 23-year-old sister, Abi Snarr; and his uncle Brooke Hale, who is Spring’s brother. Nobody in the family knows where they are and none of them have been heard from since Monday, although the boy is legally required to be returned to his father.

Ben said his wife, Spring, became interested in end-of-days religious topics in 2015. The couple regularly attended The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, and she gradually became obsessed with authors who wrote about the Second Coming, according to Ben. Spring began participating in energy healing sessions, and Ben became concerned.

“I requested that we go in and talk to our ecclesiastical leader. The bishop essentially told her she needed to stop if she wanted the marriage to survive,” Ben recalls.

The church’s General Handbook discourages members from participating in “miraculous or supernatural healings from an individual or group that claims to have special methods for accessing healing power outside of prayer and properly performed priesthood blessings. These practices are often referred to as ‘energy healing.’”

Spring took a step back, but not for long. She started to claim she was having dreams, and around two and a half years ago, “she brought my daughter (Abi) into it,” Ben says. Abi also claimed she was having dreams and she and her mom felt an urgency to stock up on emergency supplies, he said.

Brooke, Spring’s brother who lived in Provo, Utah, was also fascinated with doomsday teachings. He, Spring and Abi spent hours on the phone every day.

“She started spending a significant amount of money on food prep. She was buying a lot of winter gear, even though we live in Arizona. She was buying tents. She was convinced that the saints would have to gather in the last days up in the mountains, and she was preparing for that,” Ben said.

Although Abi was interested in the Second Coming, Ben said none of his and Spring’s other four kids were — especially Blaze.

“He is in no way a supporter of anything she’s ever believed. He is your typical teenager, and all he wants to do is hang out with friends and be on his phone,” Ben said. “He’s on the football team and has worked so hard to be on that football team. They still have games left this season. There’s no way that he would he would have gone along with it.”

In April, Spring asked Ben if they could live apart. He moved out but the family still had dinner and went to church together. He says his relationship with Spring was cordial and he moved back in with his wife at the beginning of October.

Braydon Snarr grew up in Ammon, Idaho, and married Abi in June 2021. About six months later, she told Braydon she had a dream about the last days and they ended up buying two years’ worth of food storage.

“I was comfortable doing it because I think preparedness is something that we should strive for. But over time, it started to get more and more, for lack of a better term, radical. It started to get more deep, and she connected with a bunch of different individuals with similar beliefs,” Braydon said.

Latter-day Saints are taught to have a “basic supply of food and water and some money in savings” without going to “extremes” so they can support themselves and those around them in case of disaster or troubled times.

Braydon said his wife watched videos of pastors prophesying of the last days, and she was always speaking with her mom and uncle about the Second Coming. Earlier this year, she asked her husband if he would be willing to leave their home if necessary.