When Kids Go Missing

Posted by MaryAnnHorne on Jan 16, 2007 2:52:49 PM
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I can't even imagine the despair and ecstasy of two Missouri families whose sons went missing, then suddenly were found alive at their kidnapper's apartment -- just a couple of hours away.

Now comes some deep-down parenting work that -- again -- few of us can even imagine, as the parents reconnect with their children -- one of whom was gone for four years.

As a journalist, I've been on the fringes of many missing kid cases -- local and national. Most don't turn out this way; that's for sure. As a parent, my heart leapt late Friday at the news about these missing boys. I wondered: What comes next? And, how can I keep my kid safe?

Most of the intrigue in the missing boys' story has centered on Shawn Hornbeak, 15, who was taken from his hometown of Richwoods, Mo., when he was 11. Reports say he had relative freedom, living with his captor, so everyone wonders why he didn't flee or call for help.

There could be lots of reasons, and everybody is speculating on them, of course. But speculation aside, experts say bringing a child back home after this kind of harrowing experience can be a delicate operation.

Newsweek has a fascinating interview with Ed Smart, father of Elizabeth Smart, a youngster who went missing in a famous kidnapping cases in Utah.

The other boy, Ben Owenby, had been missing for only about a week -- which must have seemed like an eternity to his frantic parents. It's important to note that the boys are at fault for what happened to them.

Dangers seem to lurk where our children are every day, and it's up to parents to try to prepare them, talk to them honestly and ... well, realize that even the most vigilant parent can't be everywhere, and you never know when your kids will need this kind of counsel.

Just this week, for instance, there was a brief story in the Sentinel about two girls who were approached by a stranger who tried to lure them into his car. Fortunately, they knew what to do, so the incident didn't turn into a horror story.

Here are some resources to help you with this important task.

An all-purpose site for info about missing children and how to keep kids safe is the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children. The site has oodles of tips on keeping kids safe and includes plenty of discussion of the ever-growing Internet threats. And it has information on the situation with missing kids across the country.

The Florida Missing Children Information Clearinghouse is administered by the FDLE and has lots of good general information, links and info that's specific to our state, including Ch*I*P, the child identification program that helps parents obtain a clinical DNA sample that can be used to help identify their kids.

As I pored over all this, I thought back to when I was a kid. Sure, we were told to stay away from strangers and taught basic safety. But it was a different time.

I also remembered reading a short story by O. Henry -- "The Ransom of Red Chief" -- in which a devilish little boy gets the best of two would-be kidnappers. A kidnapped child played as a farce?? It hardly seems possible today.

Re-reading the tale of spunky little "Red Chief," I realized the greatest weapon we have against those who would hurt our children is, in fact, our children. That's why safety education is so important. Empowered, well-grounded and prepared, our kids can help us protect them like nobody else can.

(Photos of the boys at news conferences after they were found -- Shawn with his mom, Pam Akers, and of Ben with his dad, William -- from the Associated Press.)


http://www.shawnhornbeck.com/