Moderator's Notes (Missing from ages 1-12)

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MISSING CHILDREN LINKS~

http://projectnewera.com/

http://forthelost.wordpress.com/2009/07/

http://www.missingkidsmap.com/

http://missingchild.wordpress.com/missing-children

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PRAYER FOR THE MISSING CHILDREN

HEAVENLY FATHER, AS IN TIMES PAST,
I COME, WITH HEART IN HANDS,
OFFERING LOVE AND WORSHIP;
SEEKING INSIGHT TO YOUR PLANS.

EVERY DAY, DEAR LORD,
MISSING CHILDREN ARE BROUGHT TO MIND;
SO MANY TAKEN, BY ONE PARENT OR THE OTHER.
BUT, MANY OTHERS WE JUST CAN'T FIND.

THOUGH, I KNOW, MY HEAVENLY FATHER,
YOU HAVE THEM IN YOUR SIGHT.
THEY ARE NEVER LOST TO YOU.
PLEASE HELP THEM IN THEIR FRIGHT.

SWEET LITTLE FACES,
WITH SMILES THAT MELT OUR HEART,
TAKEN, MAYBE BY SOME STRANGER.
THAT TEARS OUR SOUL APART.

FATHER GOD, SUCH WRENCHING PAIN ~
ALMOST MORE THAN WE CAN BARE.
WE, AS MORTALS, CAN COPE NO MORE.
SO, WE GIVE THEM TO YOU IN PRAYER.

SOME, MY LORD, I'M SURE, HAVE PASSED
FROM OUR EARTHLY HOUSE TO YOURS.
THEY HAVE CROSSED THE CHILLY WATERS
AND COME TO HEAVENS SHORES.

OTHERS, THOUGH WE STILL HAVE HOPE,
WILL RETURN TO ARMS OF FAMILY LOVE,
HERE, ON EARTH; STILL ABIDING,
NOT TIME FOR THEM TO GO ABOVE.

LORD, BE A COMFORTER
FOR THOSE WHO WAIT AND MOURN.
THE GRIEVING PARENTS YOU GAVE THEM,
THE CHILD THAT THEY HAD BORN.

THOUGH UNSEEN TO US, MY FATHER,
YOU KNOW JUST WHERE THEY ARE, TODAY.
THOSE GATHERED HOME TO YOU, NOW, SAFE;
IT'S FOR THE MISSING THAT WE PRAY.

PLEASE HOLD THEM, JEHOVAH, GOD.
PROTECT THEM FROM THE PAIN.
TEND THEM ALL AND MERCY KEEP,
AND SEND THEM HOME, AGAIN.

ALL THESE THINGS WE ASK OF YOU.
PLEASE, LET US HOPE, FOR NOW.
WE KNOW NOT WHERE THEY BE
RETURN THEM FATHER.
TO YOU WE LEAVE THE HOW.

WE LIFT EACH WEE ONE, O LORD;
TEENAGER AND THOSE IN-BETWEEN ~
OUT OF SIGHT FROM US, MY LORD.
BUT, TO YOU THEY ARE NOT UNSEEN.

THE SEARCH WILL NEVER END.
FOR, SOME HAVE GONE ASTRAY.
FATHER, WATCH OVER THEM
AND SEND SOME HOME, TODAY.

BLESS THE LITTLE CHILDREN, LORD.
WIPE AWAY EACH FRIGHTENED TEAR;
FOR THOSE WHO MADE IT HOME WITH YOU
AND FOR THOSE WHO STILL LINGER HERE.

WHETHER WE FIND THEM, JESUS,
EITHER HERE, ON EARTH, OR OVER THERE;
GOD TELL THEM, EVERY ONE,
HOW VERY MUCH WE CARE.

THE NEVER ENDING SEARCH GOES ON
'TIL WE MEET AT JESUS' FEET.
'TWILL BE REUNITED, THERE,
AND ALL THINGS, IN YOU, ARE, NOW, COMPLETE.

SO, FATHER OF MERCY, WHO KNOWS ALL THINGS,
HEAR US AS WE PRAY FOR EVERY ONE.
MAY ALL THINGS BE AS YOU HAVE PLANNED
AND FOR THE CHILDREN, MAY THY WILL BE DONE.

AMEN

THE BIBLE SAYS, "SUFFER THE LITTLE CHILDREN
TO COME UNTO ME AND FORBID THEM NOT,
FOR OF SUCH IS THE KINGDOM OF GOD."

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Moderator's Notes (Missing from ages 1-12) 2zsp378

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TRENTON
Moderator's Notes (Missing from ages 1-12) 2wm2n95

Trenton Duckett turned 2 years old on Aug. 10, 2006. On Aug. 27, 2006, just 17 days after his birthday, he was reported missing from his home shortly after 9:00 P.M. Although there have been hundreds of leads and tips investigated, to date, Trenton's whereabouts are still unknown.

Trenton was last seen with his mother, Melinda Duckett, age 21, while leaving her grandparents home in Lady Lake, FL at approximately 4:15 P.M. on Sat. Aug. 26th. After getting gas at approximately 5:30 P.M. in Leesburg that same evening, her & Trenton's whereabouts are unknown until the following day, Sun., Aug. 27th at approximately 4:00 P.M. when Melinda was seen at her apartment complex alone by an acquaintance.

The accounts of Trenton's father, 21 year old Joshua Duckett's whereabouts had been seemingly satisfied by investigators through witness statements and a passed polygraph. The investigators were still substantiating the details given by Melinda of driving around in her silver Mitsubishi Eclipse with Trenton on Sunday and visiting family and friends. Melinda had not yet agreed to a polygraph exam. The investigation was hindered when tragically Melinda took her own life at the home of her grandparents on Sept. 8th, less than two weeks after Trenton was reported missing.

To date, investigators are still trying to piece together the timeline for Melinda Duckett between the hours of 5:30 P.M. on Aug. 26, until approximately 8:15 A.M. on Aug. 27th, 2006.

If anyone has any information regarding this investigation, they are encouraged to call the Leesburg Police Department at 1-352-787-2121 or 1-800-423-TIPS (8477).

Also a more extensive video on this... vigil on that page....
link is
http://www.wftv.com/news/20602393/detail.html

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Free Albums & Flyers

http://www.iblue.com/albumsforthemissing/albums.html

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Moderator's Notes (Missing from ages 1-12) 575777

EWTNKids

http://www.ewtn.com/ewtnkids/prayer.htm

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LIGHT A CANDLE :thanku:

http://www.gratefulness.org/candles/candles.cfm?l=eng&gi=D2C

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http://sunshinereview.org/index.php/State_sunshine_laws
ALL STATE "SUNSHINE LAW"

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Moderator's Notes (Missing from ages 1-12) Missing-children-glitter-ribbon-gre

New Amber Alert GPS Helps Track Kids
http://www.amberalertgps.com

Say Hello on Halloween for Robert Manwill
http://www.2news.tv/news/local/65757122.html

Worldwide Social Network for Police Officers

Police Pulse
www.policepulse.com

Child Offenders Registry
www.protectyourchild.com

Nearly 500,000 Offenders On File
Get Maps, Photos & Offense Info
www.NationalAlertRegister.com

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http://www.childcrisisnetwork.com/casesearch/new_or_updated_cases.cfm
Cases added or updated in the last 60 days:

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Missing Children List
http://www.dcf.state.fl.us/missingkids/
The Florida Department of Children and Families requests the public's assistance in locating the following missing children:

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Snapshot search:Haleigh Cummings Featured
http://snapshotsearch.net/

:candle:

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In memory of the Children
http://viewmorepics.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=user.viewAlbums&friendID=493197730

Stop the abuse and murder of the children in the U.S.

http://www.thepetitionsite.com/16/stop-the-abuse-and-murder-of-the-children-in-the-us

Change sex offender laws

http://www.thepetitionsite.com/1/change-sex-offender-laws

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UN officials: Twenty years after treaty, ensuring child rights still a challenge
www.chinaview.cn
2009-11-21

UNITED NATIONS, Nov. 20 (Xinhua) -- The Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC) has become the most widely accepted human rights treaty in history, but 20 years after its adoption, much more remains to be done to turn its promises into reality for millions worldwide, top United Nations officials said here on Friday.

UN Secretary-general Ban Ki-moon said that the convention, which has been ratified by 193 States, has inspired new approaches and advances in child survival and education, as well as increased awareness of children's specific problems.

"But realizing the rights in the convention remains a huge challenge," he told a special event at the UN Headquarters in New York, just one of over 160 events taking place worldwide to commemorate the 20th anniversary of the adoption of the landmark treaty by the UN General Assembly.

The convention articulates a set of universal children's rights, such as the right to an identity, a name and a nationality, the right to an education, and rights to the highest possible standards of health and protection from abuse and exploitation.

The secretary-general noted that millions of children still die before their fifth birthday from largely preventable causes. Millions more lack access to clean food, water and education, and are victims of violence and exploitation.

"That is why children should always have the first claim on our attention and resources," said Ban, who met earlier in the day with youth activists from countries like Brazil, Kenya and Pakistan.

However, this is especially true now, at a time when multiple crises threaten the poorest people, particularly in developing countries, he added. "Children must be at the heart of our thinking on climate change, on the food crisis, and on the other challenges we are addressing on a daily basis."

The head of the UN Children's Fund (UNICEF) also stressed that much more remains to be done, despite all that has been achieved during the past 20 years. "That an estimated 8.8 million children continue to die before they celebrate their fifth birthday is simply unacceptable," Executive Director Ann M. Veneman said.

She also shared the stories of some of the children she has met during her travels, such as the girls in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) who have been subject to sexual violence, the boys who were abandoned by their families as witches in central Africa, and children abducted from their families and forced to serve as child soldiers or sex slaves.

"As we mark the 20th anniversary of the convention, let us remember the unspeakable violations of rights that occur almost daily to the most innocent of innocents, children," she said at the event, which was emceed by UNICEF's Advocate for Children Affected by War, Ishmael Beah, a best-selling author and former child soldier from Sierra Leone.

"The world must build on the progress achieved to ensure that stories such as theirs become part of the past," Veneman said.

Earlier this week, as part of its commemoration of the Convention's anniversary, UNICEF launched a special edition of its flagship The State of the World's Children report, tracking the impact of the treaty and the challenges that remain.

Among other things, the report stressed that the rights of girls still require special attention, noting that the majority of children not attending primary school are girls, and girls are more likely to suffer sexual violence, be trafficked or forced into child marriage. In many regions they are also less likely to receive essential healthcare.

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Links
www.childalert.org
www.findthekids.com
www.interpol.int/Public/Children/Missing
www.njereztehumbur.com
www.hamogelo.gr
www.manuassociation.org
www.lostchildren.com

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Child traffickers target runaways and 'throwaways'"
November 19, 2009

Child traffickers target runaways, 'throwaways'
By Eliott C. McLaughlin, CNN
November 18, 2009

Who killed 5-year-old Shaniya Davis? Her mother is charged with human trafficking, and many questions remain about what happened. Watch "Nancy Grace" as she digs deeper, tonight at 8 on HLN.

(CNN) -- It sounds like the plot of a crime drama or the scourge of a developing country, but human trafficking is a serious problem in the U.S. and America's children are frequent pawns, experts say.

The case of Antoinette Nicole Davis, a North Carolina mother accused of selling her 5-year-old daughter, Shaniya, into prostitution, highlights one of the most heinous -- albeit rare -- forms of trafficking within the U.S.

Davis faces numerous charges, including human trafficking, felony child abuse and prostitution. Mario Andrette McNeill has been charged with kidnapping in the case after police said a surveillance camera captured images of him and Shaniya at a hotel in Sanford.

Polaris Project, a nonprofit organization that studies human trafficking, has more frequently seen cases in which children were sold by family members "out of desperation in developing countries" such as Cambodia or sub-Saharan African nations, said executive director and CEO Mark Lagon.

"But it happens sometimes here," he said.

More common in the United States are traffickers who exploit abused runaways or so-called "throwaways" -- children abandoned by their parents and living on the streets, Lagon said.

"The trafficker plays the role of a father or loverboy who is offering care to the child, who is vulnerable," he said, explaining that what begins as flattery and attention often turns to suggestions of prostitution.

The child, typically homeless and in need of food and shelter, can be manipulated into "survival sex," Lagon said. In other instances, the trafficker or pimp will get the child hooked on drugs and use their addiction as leverage.

Named for the North Star that guided slaves along the Underground Railroad, Polaris Project works to stamp out the global trade in humans.

Lagon, formerly the State Department's director of the Office to Monitor and Combat Trafficking in Persons, said it's a tough fight because there is a dearth of "good statistics" on human trafficking and it's not a crime in which victims readily come forward.

But the news is replete with reports on major rings being busted. The FBI did not return messages to discuss human trafficking, but news releases from the agency's Innocence Lost initiative show that in the past 18 months, four stings -- dubbed Operations Cross Country I, II, III and IV -- have yielded about 2,300 arrests and the recovery of about 170 children.

"We may not be able to return their innocence, but we can remove them from this cycle of abuse and violence," FBI Director Robert Mueller said in a statement after a February bust.

Specific examples also abound. In August, two bar owners and a manager in Long Island, New York, were charged with sex trafficking and alien harboring with victims as young as 17. A few days later, a husband and wife in Orange County, Florida, were charged with kidnapping a 15-year-old at gunpoint and forcing her to turn tricks.

In September, a U.S. Army private and three other men were indicted on charges of running a sex-trafficking businesses from a Millersville, Maryland, apartment. One of the prostitutes was 16.

No pleas have been entered in the Florida or Maryland cases. The three defendants in Long Island have pleaded not guilty.

While prostitution is a common impetus for trafficking children, Lagon said there are numerous examples of young men and women being forced into domestic servitude. Many times, he said, those victims are sexually abused as well.

"This is something that deserves decades in prison."
Mark Lagon, Polaris Project executive director and CEO

Though statistics on the depth of domestic trafficking are difficult to ascertain, the University of Pennsylvania conducted a study in 2001 showing that between 244,000 and 325,000 American children were at risk of sexual exploitation, including child pornography, juvenile prostitution and trafficking children for sexual purposes.

The average age of a female victim's first involvement in prostitution, according to the study, was between 12 and 14.

"That, shockingly, means a number get in when they're incredibly young, and that's all the more horrifying," Lagon said.

Lagon said he was impressed with federal initiatives and believes "it's great the FBI has more and more focused on trying to save prostituted children as sex trafficking victims."

The only caveat to his praise, he said, is a concern that adults swept up in raids are sometimes charged as prostitutes when they, too, may have been subjected to coercion or pulled into the trade as minors.

The onus is on society and government to stop the trafficking of American children, he said. Citizens should pay attention to signals that something is amiss with a child and be careful not to "sneer or stigmatize" when they see a prostituted teen.

Government, meanwhile, should toughen its punishments for child trafficking and more actively target the "johns" and pimps who make the trade possible, according to Lagon.

"That person has to be punished like they've committed a crime akin to slavery. This is something that deserves decades in prison," he said.

http://www.cnn.com/2009/CRIME/11/18/domestic.child.trafficking/

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State ranks 3rd in missing persons

By Anthony Colarossi Sentinel Staff Writer

October 31, 2009

At times Florida can seem to be the national epicenter of reported missing children and child abductions.

The cases here gain national prominence and rarely have happy endings. After the media fanfare is over, the children's names stick out as sad reminders: Carlie Brucia. Jessica Lunsford. Trenton Duckett. Caylee Anthony. Haleigh Cummings. And now Somer Thompson.

The state does hold a number of unfortunate distinctions when it comes to measuring the number of children reported missing and, what some consider a related statistic, the number of registered sex offenders in the state.

According to the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children, Florida generally ranks third in the nation — behind only California and Texas — for reported missing persons, most of whom are children, registered sex offenders and the number of "stereotypical kidnappings," the most serious kind of stranger abductions.

The numbers can seem frightening for parents. Florida had nearly 62,000 missing-person reports during 2007. And as of July, the state had 51,560 registered sex offenders.

The vast majority of missing-person cases end up getting resolved. Many times reported missing children are kids who get lost or are runaways, said Ernie Allen with the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children.

Many other cases involve custodial disputes. So of the roughly 800,000 kids reported missing nationwide each year, only about 58,000 represent "nonfamily abductions," Allen said. And only about 115 of those are defined as "stereotypical kidnappings."

Those involve someone the child does not know or has only a slight acquaintance with and who "holds the child overnight, transports the child 50 miles or more, kills the child, demands ransom or intends to keep the child permanently," according to Allen and U.S. Department of Justice statistics.

The large missing-persons numbers in California, Texas and Florida may be explained by a number of common factors.

"You've got large, populous states. You've got magnet states," Allen said. "You've got year-round climate, and kids tend to be relatively more accessible."

The large numbers of sex offenders in those states "probably" have some correlation, Allen said, but he also noted that not all sex offenders' crimes involve children.

"The 51,000 in Florida does not mean they all represent a serious threat to children in the state," said Allen, who has called for a tiered system for delineating sex offenders.

Florida ranks behind 13 other states in the number of sex offenders per 100,000 people. Florida has 281 such offenders per 100,000. Nationwide the ratio is 223 per 100,000.
http://www.orlandosentinel.com/news/crime/orl-somer-sidebar-103109,0,73629.story

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Need 5000
Votes/Signatures
Please visit site and sign petition

Support For HR 3695, The Help Find The Missing Act (Billy's Law)

To: The U.S. House

Started by: Delilah Jones

Every year tens of thousands of Americans go missing, never to be seen by their loved ones again. Additionally, there are also an estimated 40,000 sets of unidentified human remains that are being held or disposed of across the country. Sadly, because of gaps in the nation's missing persons systems, missing persons and unidentified remains are rarely matched. The Help Find the Missing Act (Billy's Law) is an effort to fix these gaps. We want to help families to have the resources so that we can lessen the burden on the system as well as bringing loved ones home for a proper burial.

Sponsored by Representatives Chris Murphy (D-CT) and Ted Poe (R-TX)
Moderator's Notes (Missing from ages 1-12) F3yn0n

Moderator's Notes (Missing from ages 1-12) F3yn0n

This legislation is named after Billy Smolinski of Waterbury, Connecticut who went missing on August 24, 2004 at the age of 31. Billy's family knows all-too-well the systemic challenges in trying to find the missing. They quickly learned that while federal law mandates law enforcement report missing children, there are no such requirements for adults - or unidentified bodies. Compounding this problem is the fact that local law enforcement agencies, medical examiners, and coroners, often don't have the resources or training to voluntarily report these cases. Finally, even when missing adults and remains are reported, the wide-range of unconnected federal, state, local, and non-profit databases to help match the missing with unidentified bodies, makes finding a match an often insurmountable challenge.

http://www.change.org/actions/view/support_for_hr_3695_the_help_find_the_missing_act_billys_law

This is the Final Hour, We MUST Call our Representatives!

Please click on the link below, once there add your zipcode in space provided and then click on Rep's link to also be provided with phone contact info. ---- Thanks!

http://www.congress.org/congressorg/officials/congress/

Support and Co-Sponsorship for H.R. 3695, The Help Find The Missing Act (Billy's Law)
Please copy/paste then email to your district's congressman.

Dear Representative,

Thank you, in advance for reviewing my letter and the information below. As the Congress Member of our district, I am hoping that you will cosponsor H.R. 3695, the “Help Find the Missing Act (Billy’s Law),” introduced by Representatives Chris Murphy and Ted Poe. This legislation would aid in filling the gaps in the nation’s missing persons system and would help bring closure to the loved ones of the missing. This is very important to me and as a member of our community, I believe this is important to all and hopefully to you, as well.

It is no longer a rare occasion in which one may become a missing statistic. Every year tens of thousands of Americans go missing, never to be seen by their loved ones again. Additionally, there are also an estimated 40,000 sets of unidentified human remains that are being held or disposed of across the country. Sadly, because of gaps in the nation’s missing persons systems, missing persons and unidentified remains are rarely matched. The Help Find the Missing Act (Billy’s Law) is an effort to fix these gaps. We want to help families to have the resources so that we can lessen the burden on the system as well as bringing loved ones home for a proper burial.

Please review the below and help by supporting H.R. 3695

Filling in the Gaps of the Nation’s Missing Persons Systems

Endorsed By: National Center for Missing & Exploited Children, Fraternal Order of Police, National Associations of Police Organizations (NAPO), Connecticut Department of Public Safety,

National Forensic Science Technology Center, National Center for Forensic Science, Doe Missing Persons Network, Families of Homicide Victims and Missing Persons, Inc., Peace4TheMissing, Please Help Find The Missing Group, Center for Hope, Voices for the Missing & Unidentified A.M.A.L.P MINISTRY, Project EDAN, LostNMissing Inc., CUECENTER,

Sponsored by Representatives Chris Murphy (D-CT) and Ted Poe (R-TX)

Current Cosponsors:
Rep Gordon, Bart [TN-6] - 11/18/2009
Rep Hinchey, Maurice D. [NY-22] - 12/2/2009
Rep Maloney, Carolyn B. [NY-14] - 12/2/2009
Rep McCotter, Thaddeus G. [MI-11] - 12/2/2009
Rep Minnick, Walter [ID-1] - 10/7/2009
Rep Norton, Eleanor Holmes [DC] - 12/2/2009
Rep Poe, Ted [TX-2] - 10/1/2009
Rep Shea-Porter, Carol [NH-1] - 10/28/2009
Rep Whitfield, Ed [KY-1] - 10/22/2009
Rep Fudge, Marcia [OH-11] -12/10/2009
Rep Chandler, Ben [KY-6] - 1/8/2010
Rep McIntyre, Mike [NC-7] - 1/8/2010
Rep Hasting, Alcee [FL-23] - 1/12/2010
Rep Farr, Sam [CA-17] - 1/12/2010
Rep DeLauro, Rosa [CT-3] - 1/12/2010
Rep Chu, Judy [CA-32] - 1/20/2010
Rep Courtney, Joe [CT-2] - 1/20/2010
Rep Massa, Eric [NY-29] - 1/20/2010
Rep Thompson, Bennie [MS-2] - 1/20/2010
Rep Conyers, John Jr. [MI-14] - 1/21/2010
Rep Waters, Maxine [CA-35] - 1/21/2010
Rep Wasserman Schultz, Debbie [FL-20] - 1/21/2010

Sen Gillibrand, Kristen E [NY] 2/23/2010
Sen Merkley, Jeff [OR] 2/23/2010
Sen Schumer, Charles [NY] 2/23/2010
Sen Jeff Merkley [OR]
Sen Mark Pryor [AR]

We are appreciative of the endorsement for H.R. 3695 from the National Associations of Police Organizations. (NAPO)

Please click here for link to their endorsement letter: http://tinyurl.com/NAPO-HR3695

This legislation is named after Billy Smolinski of Waterbury, Connecticut who went missing on August 24, 2004 at the age of 31. Billy’s family knows all-too-well the systemic challenges in trying to find the missing. They quickly learned that while federal law mandates law enforcement report missing children, there are no such requirements for adults – or unidentified bodies. Compounding this problem is the fact that local law enforcement agencies, medical examiners, and coroners, often don’t have the resources or training to voluntarily report these cases. Finally, even when missing adults and remains are reported, the wide-range of unconnected federal, state, local, and non-profit databases to help match the missing with unidentified bodies, makes finding a match an often insurmountable challenge.

Billy’s Law builds upon recent efforts to address these issues by:

* Authorizing, and therefore helping to ensure funding for, the National Missing Persons and Unidentified Persons System (NamUs), which was created in July 2007 by the Department of Justice (DOJ) to provide a missing persons/unidentified database that the public could access and contribute;

* Connecting NamUs with the FBI’s National Crime Information Center (NCIC) in order to create more comprehensive missing persons and unidentified remains databases and streamlining the reporting process for local law enforcement;

* Creating an incentive grants program to help states, local law enforcement and medical examiners/coroners report missing persons and unidentified remains to NCIC, NamUs, and the National DNA Index System (NDIS);

* Calling on the DOJ to issue guidelines and best practices on handling missing persons and unidentified remains cases in order to empower law enforcement, medical examiners and coroners to help find the missing.

In closing, I thank you again for your review and hopeful support. Should you have any questions or needs, I am sure that Representative Chris Murphy (D-CT) and Ted Poe (R-TX) would be honored to respond to your inquiries.

Please see the PDF of this very important bill: http://tinyurl.com/BillHR3695

[Your name here]

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Charley Project Updates:

http://www.charleyproject.org/index.html

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Angels that care
http://angelsthatcare.homestead.com/missing_children2.html

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Help us find the missing: Become an AAN Member and receive notifications about missing persons via email.

Click here to become a part of the solution: http://www.projectjason.org/awareness.shtml

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Thursday, April 29, 2010
http://timesupblog.blogspot.com/2010/04/oprah-jane-valez-mitchell-and-nancy.html

By Cyndi Caron

I’m going to be brutally honest here. Families of missing loved ones have a better chance of winning their state lottery, or in receiving an all expense paid trip around the world, including flights and hotel stays, than they do of getting their missing family member on those shows.

Why? Because for one most of what is presented has been on schedule for weeks by the producers and writers as well as the already interruptions when breaking news happens such as the devastating Haiti earthquake. Unless there is serious foul play involved, in which your local media is constantly portraying, and the surroundings of your missing loved one includes sensationalism, such as the spouse is a suspect who has been found to be committing adultery after your loved one goes missing and more so if children involved, along with your missing “Suzy” having a pristine background, it’s highly unlikely that her status will be aired.
Unfortunately, it’s television. The more scandal the better chance of your “story” being aired.

When is the last time you’ve seen a missing overweight runaway teen with acne, or a missing black male teenager portrayed on a nationally syndicated news or show? Is physical beauty a necessary requirement to capture the attention of viewers? Or as some African Americans will say “only white missing kids make it to those shows?”

What about missing adults? Why aren’t they portrayed? Is it due to the wrong mentality that “adults have a right to go missing?” Yes, nationally syndicated news agencies picked up on Ohio’s “missing mom” Tiffany Tehan, but that was only after it was realized she was spotted on video cameras weeks before with a mystery male. Yes, that story was indeed picked up due to the startling fact that missing mom was seemingly becoming a “runaway mom” leaving behind a church-going husband and her infant daughter. Personally, no adult has the right to go missing unless they are willing to notify their local police agency first. They have a right to leave, but to go missing? No.

So what are the criteria and how do families of missing get their loved ones on these shows?

Let’s start off with Nancy Grace’s show. While at times her show can be quite interesting, it is nearly always about the same case over and again with “breaking news” that happened days or even weeks ago and already known from online readers. While Nancy “gets to the matter” and nearly asks all the questions, that you the viewer want to know, her show is really not set up to portray multiple cases in an equal amount of airtime. Shame because from those I’ve talked with would love to see each nightly episode featuring two new missing cases each eve with no carry over, unless real breaking news exists. This could then be announced in a brief comment prior to commercial interruptions. Course, I’m neither an executive producer nor Nancy Grace’s producer so I will leave well enough said. On a positive note, Nancy does have a great blog online that various cases and missing loved ones are portrayed. There have been a time or two in which I’ve seen some of our LostNMissing loved ones’ banners posted and I welcome her staff to utilize any and as many as they like at any time. Banners are not copyright and all we ask is that they are kept intact as designed when posted.

Jane’s show, which I find has a more variety of topics, along with entire teams of professionals who voice their opinions and present updated facts to a case, is also extremely difficult to reach as producers schedule either far in advance or very near or immediate to whatever has happened the day before. It’s unfortunate as I feel her show is probably one of the most ideal to have a variety of missing loved ones portrayed. I invite Jane’s show to go through our website and feel free to pick and choose as many missing loved one’s banners and flash on the screen before or after the show anytime.

Oh Oprah! I don’t know what to say other than its hard to explain to family members of missing loved ones that it is nearly impossible to reach Oprah or any of her producers. Believe me, I’ve tried. I think as a non runner I could win the Boston Marathon before I could achieve having a missing loved one portrayed on Oprah’s show. It doesn’t matter that I personally beat Oprah, by one place, on the Ms. Twitterworld Contest. I came in 16th and she in 17th place. Even though she has over a million followers, to my 4300, you can bet I celebrated…a little anyhow. Did I really beat out Oprah on Twitter? I doubt it. For one, Oprah is so spread out far and wide with her many ventures that I really wonder if it’s Oprah tweeting anyhow. It’s my guess that one of her hundreds of “assistants” represents her. Or could it be that she was just “too kind” to tweet her followers to vote for her? Let the “little guy” win. Either way it doesn’t matter as it was merely a silly contest.

What does matter is what are the true criteria that I can tell crying parents, in emotional turmoil, as to why nationally syndicated shows would rather use valuable airtime listing all the mistresses of Tiger Woods and Jessie James as opposed to listing even a handful of missing loved ones? Yes, even adults who are missing have distraught and grieving parents who beg for any airtime possible for their missing child. Ask the parents of Jeramy Carl Burt, Brian Sullivan’s mom, or the family of missing Beverly Meadows. They would give anything to have their loved ones portrayed. Or the grandmother of 15 year old Peyton Borden, a young black male who bolted from an Illinois courthouse in the fall of 2009 after learning that he would have to go back and live with his father in Georgia, instead of residing with his maternal grandmother since his own mom was killed in a car accident when Peyton was only 8 years old, only to never be seen again! Perhaps talking with the family of Thomas and Jimmy Zinza would be ideal. Two brothers, both missing years apart. Yes, you read that correctly. Jimmy went missing in 1992 and could be living on the streets anywhere in the US and a nationally syndicated show could literally bring about recognition. Thomas went missing, under strange circumstances from a hotel room in PA while traveling on business from Hawaii in 2008. Imagine the turmoil their family endures, it’s incomprehensible.

I will close this with a challenge. Which nationally syndicated show will make contact with LostNMissing to offer to portray one of the many missing loved ones that we represent who has never received their much needed national airtime? Will it be Oprah? Nancy Grace? Or the Jane Valez Mitchell show? Stay tuned as I will update in my next report. My phone line is open.

Cynthia L. Caron
President/Founder
LostNMissing, Inc.
www.lostnmissing.com

Team Angels

girl with light Pictures, Images and Photos

Laura Recovery Center for missing children,

Attached is your copy of the Spotlight Newsletter for May, 2010.

Thank you for your continued support.

If you know someone that would like to receive our monthly Spotlight
newsletter, please have them call the LRC office (281-482-5723 or
866-898-5723) or e-mail us at info@lrcf.net - thanks!

Previous versions of the Spotlight are always available at:

http://www.lrcf.org/Spotlight

======================================================================
Bob Smither, Co-Founder Laura Recovery Center
Office: 281-482-LRCF; 866-898-5723 Fax: 281-482-5727; 888-268-0573
BobSmither@LRCF.net Info@LRCF.net WWW.LRCF.org

Team Angels

Laura Recovery Center recognized by the US Justice Department

Laura Recovery Center Receives National Recognition http://www.lrcf.org/node/128

The Laura Recovery Center for missing children was awarded this year's US Department of Justice Missing Children Non-Profit Organization of the Year Award. The award was presented to Gay Smither and Bob Walcutt at the annual Executive Director's Conference of AMECO (Association of Missing and Exploited Children’s Organizations) in Albuquerque, New Mexico. The award recognizes "... outstanding contribution and commitment to missing and exploited children" and was presented by Katherine Darke Schmitt, an Associate Deputy Administrator with the US Department of Justice.

The Laura Recovery Center was nominated for the award by Captain Shari Burrows of the Friendswood Police Department. In her nomination letter, Captain Burrows noted that "This organization has upheld high standards of professionalism and demonstrated noteworthy leadership in protecting children while forging positive relationships with local partners." In addition Captain Burrows praised "the extraordinary effort they display contributing to the protection of children."

Gay Smither, co-founder and president of the Laura Recovery Center, stated "It is an honor to receive this prestigious award. We are pleased to be recognized by the Justice Department for the work of our dedicated staff and volunteers. Being a warrior for missing children is often difficult, but we know that one missing child is one too many!"

Cynthia L. Caron
President/Founder
LostNMissing, Inc.

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