After more than a year of rallying the public to bring 14-year-old Amber Dubois home alive, her family on Sunday retreated in grief at the news the missing girl was found dead. The community began its mourning, too.

Amber's skeletal remains were found north of the Pala Indian Reservation Saturday morning by police and sheriff's detectives following a tip, Escondido police Chief Jim Maher said Sunday at a news conference.

Amber's father Maurice Dubois and mother Carrie McGonigle learned the news Saturday evening, Maher said. They attended Sunday's press conference, but appeared too grief-stricken to speak at length.

With wet eyes and a faraway look, a hunched Maurice Dubois briefly thanked volunteers who had helped search for his daughter. McGonigle stood by his side, also tearful.

Ever since Amber, a bookish freshman, disappeared without a trace on her way to school at Escondido High on Feb. 13, 2009, her parents have said they believed she was alive, most probably abducted by someone who was keeping her against her will.

Only last week, when 30-year-old registered sex offender John Albert Gardner was arrested on suspicion of killing 17-year-old Chelsea King near Lake Hodges, did they begin speaking openly about the possibility that Gardner, who lived in Escondido from 2008 until early 2010, might have killed their daughter.

"In our hearts, we don't want to accept that," Maurice Dubois said last week.

Maher on Sunday would not comment on the investigation and would not say whether Gardner was suspected in Amber's death.

On Sunday, the family of Chelsea King reacted to Amber's death on their Facebook page, Chelsea's Light.

"Chelsea's light is grieving not only for Chelsea, but for beautiful Amber Dubois, whose remains were discovered today. Our hearts and love go out to the Dubois family."

Several Amber Dubois memorial pages also had been added to Facebook by Sunday evening.

Escondido resident Michelle Tuckerson said she and her husband became friends with Maurice Dubois after stopping off at the Amber Search Center last March to help. She said she cried Sunday when she learned of his new grief.

"You want closure for the family, so they can mourn, but at the same time, I just know the pain is unbelievable," Tuckerson said. "He believed it with all his heart she wasn't dead"

Amber's mysterious disappearance has haunted people in Escondido and beyond, with thousands putting up posters or getting involved in weekend searches, fundraisers and vigils.

Mayor Lori Holt Pfeiler said the community would "mourn and grieve" Amber's death. A longstanding wish she might one day come home made her death even harder, she said.

"She has weighed very heavy on our hearts, and we had hoped we would be able to find her," Pfeiler said.

All five City Council members attended the Sunday news conference to show support for Amber's family, the mayor said.

"It's a very sad day," said City Councilman Dick Daniels. "It's a nightmare we've finally woken up to that we hoped wouldn't be, but feared would be."

Mourners stopped by Escondido High School and put up makeshift memorials Sunday evening.

School officials Sunday made preparations for a hard day at the school.

Ed Nelson, superintendent of the Escondido High School District, said crisis teams were being readied to provide counseling to adults and students on Monday.

"We will make sure our counselors are prepared to deal with anything that surfaces on any of the campuses," he said. "In light of the King case and now this, the concerns are magnified. What a devastating and tragic end for both families."

At Escondido High, Amber was an enthusiastic member of the Future Farmers of America Club. On the morning she disappeared, she had a $200 check to cover the deposit to obtain a lamb she planned to raise with the club.

Agriculture teacher and FFA sponsor Marc Reyburn said club members have always believed Amber would be found alive, so he wasn't sure how kids would react at school Monday.

"Even when Chelsea King went missing, and then was found, they still had hope," Reyburn said. "'We're going to find Amber; we're going to find Amber,'" he said they'd say.

Amber's best friend, Jade Fidel, was doing "horrible" after she learned the news while watching the live news conference on television, Jade's father, Jeff Fidel, said.

"I was in the other room; I didn't know," he said. "I just heard (Jade) wailing and screaming. How is it they find one girl after two days and one after 14 months?"

Staff writers Teri Figueroa and Mark Walker contributed to this report.

Call staff writer Sarah Gordon at 760-740-3517.