[Congressional Record Volume 141, Number 88 (Thursday, May 25, 1995)]
[Senate]
[Pages S7574-S7575]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]


                    NATIONAL MISSING CHILDREN'S DAY

 Mr. D'AMATO. Mr. President, I rise today to speak about 
National Missing Children's Day. This day focuses on what must be one 
of the most horrifying events in a parent's life: the abduction of 
their child. Nothing I say could ever ease their pain, but I would like 
to let them know that my thoughts are with them.
  I want to take this opportunity to applaud the efforts of programs 
that assist families in these situations. The National Center for 
Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC) is a remarkable organization. 
NCMEC handles over 850,000 calls on its hotline, worked on 43,000 cases 
and, amazingly, played a role in the recovery of 28,000 children. Using 
advanced technology, this vital center disseminates information with 
the ultimate goal of rescuring as many children as possible.
  After personally viewing the need for these efforts, I helped to 
establish Project ALERT, which is housed within NCMEC. Hoping to tap 
into an extremely valuable resource, Project ALERT recruits retired law 
enforcment officers, provides training to them and then dispatches 
these officers to local police agencies. The officers are volunteers 
and are assigned to cases involving missing and exploited children. 
They have the experience, expertise, will and dedication to investigate 
cases and can readily available to provide these services free to local 
law enforcement agencies.
  In order to draw attention to the gravity of this National Missing 
Children's Day, some very dedicated New Yorkers have taken to their 
bicycles to ride from Herkimer County in New York to Washington, DC. 
Herkimer County has special significance. Sara Anne Wood, 12 years old 
at the time, was abducted from there on August 18, 1993. Her father, 
Reverend Robert Wood is one of the seven making the arduous trip to 
Washington, DC which will benefit the Sara Anne Wood Rescue Center. I 
would like to take a moment to congratulate them on completing their 
journey and bring national attention to their efforts.
  I also would like to speak briefly on the Morgan P. Hardiman Task 
Force on Missing and Exploited Children. The Task Force creates a team 
of active Federal agents who would work with the National Center for 
Missing and Exploited Children in assisting State and local law 
enforcement agents in their most difficult By supplementing our 
Nation's police departments with Task Force members and resources, we 
can effectively fight child victimization, a truly reprehensible crime, 
and help to reunite families disrupted by an abduction. [[Page S7575]] 
  I only hope that one day, there will be no need for a National 
Missing Children's Day or a center to locate missing and exploited 
children. Until that day comes, I will continue to do whatever I can as 
a United States Senator to assist in the efforts to bring these 
children home and to impart the most severe punishment for any depraved 
person who harms a child. This issue is dear to my heart and I will 
remain close to the efforts to help children and their families. We 
will not stop until the problem has ceased.


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