Trucks hit road to find missing kids

OLYMPIA – Some have been missing for months. Others have been lost for years.

Snatched by a noncustodial parent, or an unknown abductor, the faces of thousands of children stare out from mailings, Web sites and, occasionally, milk cartons.

Those charged with trying to find these lost children want even more people to see their faces.

Washington state will plaster large posters of missing children on tractor-trailer rigs as the big trucks travel the state’s highways and beyond, in hopes that a commuter stuck in traffic will recognize one. A similar initiative was announced in Connecticut last September, and other private industries have also used posters of missing children on trucks.

“Putting pictures of kids on trucks is a great idea,” said David Shapiro, spokesman for the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children. “The broader the reach, the more people who actually see this picture, the better the chance that someone will know that child, have seen that child or know what happened to that child.”

The Washington State Patrol’s missing children division planned to unveil the first four trucks today as part of its new “Homeward Bound” program. Two of the trucks will travel nationwide; two will drive up and down the West Coast’s Interstate 5, as far south as California.

“This could really make a difference,” said Trooper Renee Padgett, who developed the idea for the program. “We drive up and down the freeway every day.”

Truckers in other parts of the country have already been part of the effort to help bring missing children home.

Last year, Pennsylvania announced it would start posting pictures of missing children at the Pennsylvania Turnpike’s 21 service plazas.

Across the country, child abduction Amber Alerts are sent to truckers, asking them to watch for vehicles.

The Amber Alert network quickly informs law enforcement, media and the public about a child abduction. Alerts include photographs, descriptions and other information about the missing child, a possible suspect or a vehicle being sought.

Padgett said her goal is to have 200 trucks bearing the faces of the state’s missing children, but the department doesn’t have the budget for the projected cost of about $46,000. On any given day, there are 1,700 missing kids in the state, but most of them are runaways.

Gordon Trucking Inc., of Pacific, is donating the use of its trucks for the initial posters. The four posters are 90 inches by 90 inches, and were printed up by IMAGIC, a Burbank, Calif., digital art studio.

Owner David Allman said he gave the state a reduced price of $230 per poster because it was a cause he supported.

“I hope it works,” he said. “I’m a dad, and I would be devastated if my son disappeared.”

Of the four children profiled on the trucks, three are family abductions and one is believed to be in danger, Padgett said.

Above each of the children’s pictures are the words “Have You Seen Me?” and below, a phone number for people to call.

If a child is found, his or her picture will remain on the truck for a while with the word “Recovered” on it.

“That way, people will know that this project is working well and is successful,” Padgett said.