Bringing Awareness to Missing People and Praying for Their Safe Return

May 9

2 min read

I decided to write this post after being inspired by a woman I know who puts in a lot of time and effort to raise awareness for missing children and adults. I hope that each of you will take a moment to reflect on the significant number of individuals who go missing every year.

National Missing and Unidentified Persons (NamUS), states that more than 600,000 people go missing every year.

According to the OJJDP, approximately 460,000 children go missing every year in the United States.

This also does not account for the individuals that are missing without people knowing.

Note that these statistics may have been changed.

It's hard to deny that hearing this isn't both heart-wrenching and surprising. I was aware that people die and disappear daily, but I avoided dwelling on the severity of it. I didn't want to focus on the negatives of our world for fear of bringing others down.

However, like what was said by Edmund Burke, according to the internet,

"The only thing necessary for the triumph of evil is for good men to do nothing."

By disregarding the suffering of those around us, we run the risk of having nobody left to support in the end. Acknowledging their suffering might disrupt our reality and lead to some discomfort, but ultimately, we will appreciate being aware of the struggles of those around us.

There are so many ways to help in such situations, whether by participating in campaigns, sharing information, or donating to causes dedicated to locating missing children and adults. Taking some form of action is more beneficial than being inactive and questioning the lack of progress.

You can donate to one or more of the following organizations below:

Missingkids.org

Unitingamericainc.org

nightowlrecon.org

tracelabs.org

aaflc.org

I've compiled a list of two children from each state who have gone missing, as it's hard to account for every individual case. Below, I invite you to look at their faces and join me in praying for their safe return and the well-being of their families. Thank you!

Alabama