| Press
Release
GOV. RENDELL LAUNCHES MISSING KIDS INITIATIVE AT PA
TURNPIKE REST STOP
Turnpike becomes nations first highway to help find
missing children
HEMPFIELD TWP., WESTMORELAND CO. – October 21, 2005
– Governor Edward G. Rendell made the Pennsylvania Turnpike
Commission today the first transportation agency in the country to
participate in a national movement to speed the recovery of missing
children.
The Governor said the commonwealth, the Turnpike Commission and the
National Center for Missing & Exploited Children have teamed up to hang
posters of missing kids in every one of the 21 service plazas across the
commonwealth.
“It’s unsettling when we hear news about missing or abused children,”
Governor Rendell said. “Some of us feel outrage. Most of us wish there was
something we could do to help. Now there’s a way to do that with the
Pennsylvania Turnpike Commission’s groundbreaking step to bring these kids
back home.”
The National Center for Missing & Exploited Children has had success
with its campaign, finding one child for every six it posts a picture of on
a poster.
Turnpike CEO Joe Brimmeier joined Governor Rendell in unveiling one of
the missing children posters. Each poster is emblazoned with the Center’s
campaign slogan, “Picture Them Home,” and showcases six separate photos of
missing children, many of them Pennsylvanians, with information on what to
do if travelers spot one of them.
“Because abductors commonly use cross-country arteries as escape routes
during a kidnapping, the use of Turnpike rest stops makes sense as prime
locales to identify, report and hopefully recover abductees,” Brimmeier
said. “More than 190 million motorists drive on the state’s toll roads
every year.”
NCMEC President and CEO Ernie Allen said Pennsylvania’s participation in
the program will encourage other states to take part. “We hope
Pennsylvania’s participation will serve as a model for other states and
that their turnpike systems will soon join a movement that will cover the
nation coast-to-coast.”
As a national photo partner, the Pennsylvania Turnpike joins prominent
businesses such as Canon U.S.A., Firestone Tire & Service Centers,
Court-TV, USA Today and Wal-Mart in the distribution of missing children
photos throughout the nation. Widespread coverage from the Turnpike and
more than 300 other photo partners gives NCMEC and law-enforcement
officials indispensable leads resulting in the return of hundreds of
missing children.
The “Picture Them Home” campaign is designed to raise awareness of the
power of pictures in finding children. It aims to make people understand
that they can actually play a role in recognizing a missing child from a
poster and reuniting that child with his or her family.
“Pictures work,” Governor Rendell said. “If more people take the time to
look at them, more families will be reunited. Whenever you pass a missing
child poster, really look at it. Don’t think you can’t help ... you can.
Never be complacent about studying these pictures. One day, you might help
bring a child home.”
NCMEC encourages parents to keep current, high-quality pictures of their
children, regardless of their ages, and update them at least annually. A
recent poll of law enforcement found that investigators consider pictures
to be the single most important tool in the search for missing
children.
“As the hectic holiday season quickly approaches, and Turnpike traffic
increases as travelers head home for the holidays, we hope our customers
will help us ‘Picture Them Home’ by taking time to look at these photos,”
Brimmeier concluded.
The Turnpike intends to expand the program in the coming months to
display the posters at its administrative offices, maintenance sheds,
state-police barracks and toll plazas.
About the National Center for Missing & Exploited
Children
NCMEC is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization that works in cooperation with
the U.S. Department of Justice’s Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency
Prevention. NCMEC’s congressionally mandated CyberTipline, a reporting
mechanism for child sexual exploitation, has handled more than 335,000
leads. Since its establishment in 1984, NCMEC has assisted law enforcement
with more than 116,000 missing child cases, resulting in the recovery of
more than 94,000 children. For more information about NCMEC, call its
toll-free hotline at 1-800-THE-LOST or visit www.missingkids.com.
MEDIA CONTACTS:
Governor's Office
Kate Philips
717-783-1116
Pa. Turnpike
Carl DeFebo
717-920-7176
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