http://www.joplinglobe.com/local/local_story_224205910.html

Carl Junction kicks off campaign to help find missing children

08/11/08

CARL JUNCTION, Mo. — There are days these parents will never forget.

Colleen Nick still remembers June 9, 1995, as the day her 6-year-old daughter, Morgan Nick, was abducted from a ballpark in Alma, Ark.

Shannon Tanner tears up when she thinks about March 10, 2005, the day her 13-year-old daughter, Bianca Piper, didn’t return from a walk in her Foley neighborhood.

Becky Klino still relives April 11, 2001, the day her 20-year-old son, Branson Perry, walked to the storage shed next to his family’s Skidmore home to put away a pair of jumper cables and was never seen again.

Now these parents have a new date to mark: Aug. 11, 2008, the day their children’s names and photographs were posted on the back of Carl Junction police cars for residents to see each day. It’s part of the “Picture Them Home” campaign, started by the Morgan Nick Foundation.

The Carl Junction Police Department is the first law-enforcement agency in Missouri to put the photos on its vehicles. The campaign is used in Arkansas and Oklahoma, and has reunited at least five children with their families.

“Why wouldn’t we do it?” Carl Junction police Chief Delmar Haase said Monday during the unveiling of the cars.

Each of Carl Junction’s six police cruisers features photos of two different missing children, the question “Have You Seen Me?” and a phone number to call with tips.

Colleen Nick, who helped create the campaign, said there is always the hope that someone will see a photo and call in a tip, and the missing child will return home. She said the photos also raise awareness within a community and combat apathy about crimes against children.

“We’ve grown complacent,” Nick said. “It’s like we expect that children are going to be abducted. That’s a very dangerous idea to come to as a nation.”

Nick said she gets e-mails and phone calls from mothers and fathers in states where the “Picture Them Home” campaign is in full swing. She said those parents thank her because every time they see a photo on a police car, it starts a conversation with their children about safety and strangers.

Klino said she hopes the picture of her son’s face on a Carl Junction police car will not only bring him home but also keep other families from having to go through the same pain.

“Before Branson disappeared, I didn’t think about it,” she said. “I might hear about a missing child on the news, but it might go in one ear and out the other. People need to know that it can happen to anyone at any time, regardless of race, age or gender.”

Although the campaign brings hope to parents who are still looking for their children, the photos can be painful. Tanner could not hold back tears Monday as she gazed at an image of what her daughter Bianca could look like today.

“No mother should have to look at their child’s picture like that and know that this is the only way you’re going to find your daughter,” Tanner said.

Haase, the father of five children, is impassioned by the campaign. He said he has spoken to police chiefs from Webb City, Joplin and Carthage about starting the program in their cities, and they’ve all been responsive. It’s inexpensive — about $100 a car, Haase said. Carl Junction civic organizations and residents sponsored several of the cars, lowering the cost for the department.

***Carl Junction Missouri Police Cars***

Missing Child Recovered Through 'Picture Them Home' Program -  May 15, 2008    
Child Pictured On Police Car Recovered - July 12, 2008

Click Logo above to go to  The Morgan Nick Foundation Website

May 15, 2008

CLARKSVILLE, Ark. (AP) - Authorities say 1 of the missing children featured in the back windows of Clarksville police cruisers has been found. CLICK HERE TO GO TO NEWS WEBSITE

I would like to thank the Morgan Nick Foundation as well as the Clarksville , Arkansas Police Department for their tremendous support in trying to find our children.  I also need to thank the entire town of Clarksville ….I cannot begin to know the efforts of so many to make this event happen, but know that I appreciated everything that was done.  Friday, May 2^nd, 2008 they debuted 11 police cars featuring 21 missing children on them…..they will be adding one more car within the week that will be featuring Branson and another missing child.  This police department has my highest respect and I will be forever grateful for their efforts.  They are an example of what every department should be trying to do.  I pray that their initiative will spread across the country.  Even though they do not have any persons missing from their town, they have partnered with the Morgan Nick Foundation to try to help find missing persons.  Morgan Nick disappeared from a small town located about 50 miles from them.

 

I felt honored to have been a part of the event on Friday.  It was one of the most moving experiences I have had during the past 7 years.  When Police Chief Greg Donaldson spoke, you knew he meant every word of what he said and that he had every intention of doing what he could do help bring these children home.  He had such conviction, compassion, emotion, respect and pride….not only towards the families of the missing that were there and for every family that is going through what we are, but also for his town…his department.  The officers that were in attendance were incredible…very professional….very immaculate….and made the event feel so honorable…almost in a sense sacred…if you don’t mind my saying so.  I just really can’t explain the feelings….other than a feeling of hope….

 

When Colleen, Morgan’s mother and founder of the foundation, spoke there wasn’t a dry eye.  I believe she gave each of us a sense of renewed hope and determination.  She is one incredible lady and I feel so blessed to have met her.  I met several amazing people that day.  In fact, in many ways this journey has given me many blessings.  I have had the opportunity to have met so many wonderful people…I just wish it didn’t have to happen under such horrendous circumstances…….and Chaplain…thank you for your gift!  I will always try to have it with me and to remember your words!  God Bless!!!!

 

BRANSON'S  CLARKSVILLE , ARKANSAS  POLICE CRUISER
Officer Jeremy Hatchett displaying his car he drives with Branson's Photo