Guest Author - Sunniej Jackson

The Missing Children Center, Inc. held its twenty-first annual commemorative service in observance of National Missing Children's Day on May 25th, 2005 at the Seventh Day Adventist Church in Winter Springs. Cynthia Krummenacker, Public Relations Administrator with The Missing Children Center, coordinated families of missing children, various law enforcement agencies, victims advocates and the general community to come together to increase awareness of this terrible epidemic that is scouring our country.

Great information was disseminated from law enforcement agents describing the new efforts being implemented not only in Florida but nation wide. One of the new initiatives is named CART which is an acronym for Critical Alert Response Team. This team is composed of a combination of agencies along with the perspective local law agency that will respond immediately upon the report of a missing child/children. The main focus of CART is that it allows faster action and has predetermined members and specific duties to be performed. Statistics show that the faster a child/children are located the higher the chances of finding them alive.

Information on how to locate sexual predators in your neighborhood and a listing of the sexual predators and offenders in the area surrounding the church were passed out. The number was astounding. Also, information was made available of pointers for women on how to avoid abduction. Two points that stick out in my mind are: 1) If someone wants to steal your pocketbook, do not hold on to it throw it away from you and run the other way. The thief is more interested in your purse than you. 2) If you have the opportunity to get away, run because your chances of being shot while you are running are 4 in 100.

Uplifting musical entertainment was provided by EKLECTRA Presents Records, Inc. with performances by ISREAL "Is*real" The Pied Piper and Cleve Payne, The Duke of Rhyme. The emotion filled event concluded with a candle lighting ceremony in honor of all missing children to help light their way home.