Several years ago, I heard about a young adult named Wallace Richards. Wallace was 23 in November of 2005, and was known as a dependable friend and a loving son. He was engaged to a lovely aspiring reporter, and was not involved in drugs or any trouble. One day, after dropping off a friend at work, he went missing. He had promised to pick up his friend after work, but was not heard from again. His car was found nine days later.
Since his disappearance, Wallace’s family has held vigils. His friend has set up a web site. His fiancée has covered his disappearance in several articles for the local news station, and his mother has been on national television shows including the Nancy Grace show covering missing persons. Still, no news has been uncovered.
I hope that one day the young man will be found unharmed. In the mean time, I am determined to keep looking for him, and to explain to others what they can do if someone they love becomes lost or missing. I have read a number of books and talked to family members of Wallace and others who are missing, and have tried to document a list of procedures to follow if someone needs help. I never thought I would have to use these procedures myself, but that all changed about 10 days ago.
My family and I were enjoying a trip to the beach, and had spent an hour or two playing in the surf. There were five adults in our party, and only four kids. I felt that the ratio was pretty good, and that we could easily keep an eye on everyone. After taking a turn watching the kids and helping them up from the more powerful waves, I went off to body surf for a few minutes. As I rode a wave in, my wife signaled me that something was wrong. I wandered over, thinking it was time for a bathroom trip or a lunch break. Then I heard the words that I NEVER wanted to hear. My daughter Michelle was missing.
Immediately, I started running in circles, not knowing whether to go north or south along the shore to look for her. She had told her mom she was going to rinse the sand off of her hands, and had walked down to the water, and then just vanished. Her mother was now in a panic as well. My brother handed me a cell phone and told me to call 911. (Thank you, brother, for snapping me back to sensibility!) So, I called the 911 dispatcher and reported my daughter was missing. She asked where we were, and then asked about my daughter’s height, weight, race, clothing, and name.
I was beside myself. All the stories I had read about kidnappings and kids disappearing immediately started playing in my mind. I asked God to please help me find my daughter, as I thought that He knew what it was like to know the pain of a Son in trouble. I went out to the street and asked the lady in a store that sold souvenirs if she had seen my little girl. (My daughter liked the hermit crabs that the store sold, and I thought maybe she went there to look at them.)
Finally, after about thirty minutes that seemed like an eternity, I got a call that a lifeguard had found my little girl. Apparently, she had wandered off looking for shells and had quickly gotten lost. Thankfully, she knew to go to a lifeguard for help. Self-consciously but gratefully, I fell to my knees and thanked God for a positive resolution to the traumatic event.
When my daughter was brought back in the lifeguard’s truck, my life was quickly returned to normal. For many, it’s not that quickly resolved. Here are the steps to follow if someone you love goes missing.
1.
Immediately call 911. (There is no required “waiting period” before a report can be filed.)
2.
Give the dispatcher the person’s name, birth date, height, weight, clothing, and any unique identifiers such as glasses, braces, tattoos or piercings.
3.
Request that your child’s name and identifying information be immediately entered into the National Crime Information Center (NCIC) Missing Person File.
If Your Child Is Missing - Call the National Center For Missing and Exploited Children at 1-800-THE-LOST - (If they are 12 or under, and you feel that the missing person was abducted, call your local FBI office.)
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Then, log onto or refer the responding law enforcement agency to www.beyondmissing.com: This website allows registered law enforcement agencies to immediately create and distribute missing flyers to other targeted law enforcement agencies using the Internet. Parents can also create, download and print flyers for duplication, but not database or electronically distribute missing flyers. There is no cost for either service.
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Notify all local media assignment desks: The sooner television and radio begin notifying the community that a child has been kidnapped, the better the chances of recovery.
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Notify your local non-profit Child Locator Service: They can provide an array of services pertinent to your situation. Child Locator Services exist to assist in the recovery of missing children.
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If you believe that your child has run away: Contact the National Runaway Switchboard at 1-800-621-4000.
If An Adult Is Missing - Call the Center for Missing Adults at 1-800-690-FIND or go to the National Center for Missing Adults website.
Prayer is a good idea, and so is seeking support from friends and loved ones. One important thing to do is write down all names and information every time you talk to anyone regarding the missing person. These notes can help you when you need to follow up with law enforcement and other agencies, and give you a list of folks to thank when your loved one comes home.
Finally, DO NOT list your contact information on the missing posters. Use the numbers provided by law enforcement. There are a lot of people who seem to enjoy harassing those in bad situations, and having personal contact information to these people can make a bad situation worse. This will also limit the opportunistic people who may try to contact you to offer their psychic or other “services” which are often just attempts to make money from your tragedy.
Losing a loved one to death is a painful experience. Losing a loved one to the unknown is much more traumatic, because there is no closure, and there will always be doubts. With these tips, hopefully you can bring them home safe.
FORKS TWP. A 15-year-old boy who went missing Thursday died after he hanged himself from a storm drain near the Town Center strip mall, Northampton County Coroner Zach Lysek said.
The boy was reported missing at 3 p.m. and found 3:43 p.m. by people who know him. This is a 15-year-old male who hung himself in an underground storm sewer basin,” said Lysek, who pronounced the boy dead at the storm drain.
Counselors will be at Easton Area High School today, Principal William Rider said. “Our prayers are with the Godley family,” Kramer’s note read. “I have extended our sincere condolences to the Godley family.”
Godley, born in Phillipsburg, had been involved with the Forks Township Athletic Association and was a member of St. Jane Frances de Chantal Catholic Church, according to his obituary.
Godley is survived by his parents, Leonard and Annette; a brother, Artie; and two sisters, Christine and Amanda.
Okay, I realize that sometimes people don’t make rational decisions when fighting with their spouse or their significant other, but this is ridiculous.
According to police in Orlando, FL, Sharlyn Singh will be charged with Aggravated Child Abuse after she put her baby in the oven and turned it on, apparently because she was upset by a breakup with her boyfriend.
The article doesn’t say whether she mistook her baby for a turkey, or whether she was actually trying to hurt the baby. I would love to believe it was an accident, but I doubt it.
The baby is fine, a friend of Singh’s brother heard cries and got the baby out. Sharlyn is in jail.
This article made me think of a blog I was reading yesterday, in which a young woman talks about how much it hurt that her mother chose the mother’s boyfriend over the daughter when making choices.(WARNING: Contains Graphic Language) I feel horrible for this woman.
It seems that this sort of thing happens a lot. It’s amazing how self absorbed a parent can be.
When parents fail to protect their children, in order to protect an adult, the crime should hang around the necks of them all.
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