tant message that adults must reinforce to children is to tell a trusted adult anytime someone makes them feel uncomfortable,” Bradley told me. “All children should understand boundaries and what constitutes inappropriate behavior. If someone oversteps boundaries, the behavior should be reported.”
There are no obvious signs of predators “The most likely identifier is anyone who takes an interest in a child for no apparent reason,” stated Bradley. “If someone photographs, watches, entices or follows your child they should be challenged or questioned. Someone with bad intentions will usually try to build rapport with a child. A child must understand that it is never okay to go anywhere with someone they do not know,” said Bradley. Internet predation is on the rise and increasingly used by those with illintent. “Parents must know at all times whom their children are engaging with when they are playing web-based games, on social media and using chat,” said Bradley. The internet world is no different than the real world. “Diligence and full understanding of the nature of a child’s relationships are of paramount importance to parents,” said Bradley.
level, regionally throughout Kentucky,” said Bradley. Progress was made last year when FEMA partnered with the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children to offer an enhancement to AMBER Alerts. “We can now, in those rare circumstances of true abductions, activate a signal to send wireless AMBER messages to personal data devices such as wireless phones and personal data devices,” said Bradley. This service has been activated in Kentucky and can be credited for assisting nationwide in recovery of abducted children. By raising a child that is aware of his surroundings and has safety smarts, you can help reduce the statistics in Kentucky. v
There are some positive outcomes “A study by the National Center for Missing and Exploited children found that in eighty-one percent of cases children escaped abductions by their own actions,” Bradley told me. “fifty-three percent escaped by recognizing something was wrong and walking away, and another twenty-eight percent actively resisted by yelling, kicking, screaming and attracting attention.” The key is for your child to be where he is supposed to be and not to wander off or engage with strangers. Every Purchase Area family should educate their kids and loved ones on this topic. “Community awareness and commitment to the wellbeing of children is very important,” said Bradley. This means that trusted community members, like teachers, coaches and police, should be trained to recognize signs of abuse or neglect and report them to the police. “Early intervention when something is wrong may well prevent a child from running away and becoming at risk,” said Bradley. The most important thing a parent can do is provide a safe, loving home because children will naturally gravitate to where they feel safe.” This is not a definite way to prevent your child from running away but it will certainly make that outcome less likely. “Providing a home where the child can depend on trust, love and care is probably the greatest prevention to runaway behavior,” Bradley explained.
Our state is on the frontlines fighting back “The Kentucky State Police are committed to child safety and offer local programs such as child identification kits, programs for child safety and local outreach at the post www.purchasefamilymag.com May2014 • 23