FLORENCE
RECORDER
Your Community Recorder newspaper serving Florence and Union
THURSDAY, MARCH 14, 2013
BASEBALL PREVIEW A7 Boone teams battle the basepaths.
75¢
BECAUSE COMMUNITY MATTERS
Kerry Toyota sponsors child safety event By Melissa Stewart mstewart@nky.com
It’s a parent’s worst nightmare – a missing child. What do you do? According to Ashley Bickman, national coordinator of Lifeprint Next Generation Safety Event, “You need to be prepared to protect your children.” Parents and guardians will have an opportunity to prepare during a Lifeprint Child Safety Event 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday, March 16, at Kerry Toyota, 6050 Church Road, Florence. According to the National Center for Missing and Exploit-
ed Children, about 800,000 children go missing each year. Vital information such as palm prints and a digital photograph can greatly assist in a missing child investigation, Brickman said. Such resources, rarely accessible, will be made available for free during the event sponsored by Kerry. Each child will receive FBI biometric palm prints, 10 digit fingerprints, a full color digital photograph and a child safety journal in which the parent or guardian will fill out vital information about the child. Palm prints and fingerprints will be scanned by the same
equipment used by federal agencies, law enforcement and the military, Brickman explained. Biometrics is the latest and most advanced technology available for obtaining prints. All the materials will be uploaded onto a CD and given to the parent or guardian. There is no databasing, the only record of the visit is taken home. “If a child goes missing, they can hand over the CD to law enforcement who can upload the information to a database and see if there are any matches,” Brickman said. The FBI has developed a new $1.2 billion identification data-
base called Next Generation Identification. Its purpose is to hold and process both fingerprints and palm prints. “Our goal is to protect as many children as possible and prepare parents in the event something ever happens,” Brickman said. The Lifeprint program was founded by Joe Matthews who is credited with solving the famed kidnapping and murder case of Adam Walsh, son of “America’s Most Wanted” host John Walsh. The program is brought to the Florence area by host Kerry Toyota. Kerry fleet manager Mi-
Freedom looking for
HOST FAMILIES ‘You get to have a ‘son’ on the field’
chelle Lambert said they are happy to bring the event to the community. “We were looking for different events that will help us reach out to the community and thought this program was worthwhile,” she said. “Anything that makes it easier to find a child when he or she is lost is worth putting time into.” Representatives from the Florence police and fire departments will also be on hand and there will be various activities for the kids. Want to continue the conversation? Tweet MStewartReports
Mailbox could tip off ID thieves Police, bank suggest fraud protection tips By Maureen O’Hara TheCommunityRecorder@gmail.com
Have you fallen victim to identity theft? In Boone County, identity theft is increasing: Fifty-nine cases of identity theft were reported during 2012, 35 during 2011, and 27 during 2010. Major Jack Prindle, Boone County Sheriff’s Office, has investigated electronic theft since 2001. “There is almost an infinite number of circumstances that are lumped into the general category of identity theft,” said Prindle. He said people tend to think of credit card theft as identity theft. In Boone County, that crime is classified as fraudulent use of a credit card. “If your credit card is used to buy a taco in Southern California, there is no crime in Boone County,” said Prindle. “You’d have to contact law enforcement in Southern California. “Most people are fearful that their credit card information has been criminally obtained from their PC or Internet,” said Prindle. He said only a small percentage of credit card fraud can be tracked to online buying. Factually, most credit card fraud happens when criminals get credit card data from small businesses where the customer paid with a real credit card.
Maxx Catapano poses for a photograph with host mom Mollynda Walker of Edgewood. THANKS TO MOLLYNDA WALKER
By Melissa Stewart mstewart@nky.com
FLORENCE — For some it’s about the love of the game, for other Florence Freedom player hosts, like Jennifer Gulick, it’s about companionship. “The Christmas before I started hosting my husband had died,” the Union resident said. “I was alone in a big house. Come spring I saw an advertisement in the paper and I was like: ‘I’ve got an extra bedroom.’” She called the Freedom’s host family coordinator Shirley Brown just to ask a few questions. “By the time I was done asking questions, Shirley says to me: ‘OK, you’re in,’” Gulick laughed.
See FREEDOM, Page A2
Use mailbox at post office
A 2012 Florence Freedom player, Ryan Skellie, with his host Jennifer Gulick of Union. Skellie traveled all the way from Erie, Pa., to play ball in Florence. THANKS TO JENNIFER GULICK
RITA’S KITCHEN
CALM UNDER PRESSURE
Celebrate St. Patrick’s Day with champ, soda bread. B3
Brother saves younger sibling by performing Heimlich maneuver. A6
Contact us
News ........................283-0404 Retail advertising ......513-768-8338 Classified advertising .......283-7290 Delivery ......................781-4421 See page A2 for additional information
Alarmingly, many ID theft criminals steal your information directly from your mailbox. Prindle said thieves travel streets looking for mailboxes See MAILBOX, Page A2
Vol. 18 No. 28 © 2013 The Community Recorder ALL RIGHTS RESERVED