April 10, 2009
April is National Child Abuse Prevention Month, and is just as good time as any to think about all things that fall under that umbrella, including child abduction. Have you ever had a talk with your children about how to handle themselves around strangers and what they should do if they ever find themselves lost or missing? A short and simple conversation with them about how to stay safe could not only save them from going missing, it could also save their life. The Galveston County Daily News recently ran a great list of things to make sure your child knows should they find themselves missing, and a few other tips to help prevent child abduction:
- Children should know their name, address and phone number with area code.
- Children need to know that appropriate strangers, store clerks or police officers, can offer assistance if they are lost or need help.
- Parents should continue to insist on safety measures through middle school and high school. Most victims of nonfamily abductions were 12 years or older and most were girls.
- Parents should promptly report a missing child. The Amber Plan is credited with helping recover more than 130 children in its first two years.
Having the important conversations with your children is key, but using a service such as InstantAmber can take child safety one step further to ensure that you have all of the proper and up to date information about your child securely saved in case the worst should happen. When it comes to your child’s safety, you can never be too prepared.
