Houston, TX – March 11, 2009. Yesterday, Texas Center for the Missing hosted the judging for the statewide level of a national poster contest which focuses on the theme: Bring Our Missing Children Home. The contest was launched on Amber Alert Awareness Day (January 13th) and will culminate in a National Awards Ceremony on May 21, 2009.
A number of community partners, law enforcement, and volunteers served as the judges for the contest including: Sgt. Bruce Balchunas, Galveston County Sheriff’s Office; Robert Brewer, Harris County-CPS; John O’Mahoney, MetLife; and Camille Sumter, Volunteer. The winner for the State of Texas is Journey Hartung of Clute Intermediate.
The Texas winner will be honored at a Fourth of July celebration in Kemah and will receive a copy of their artwork framed for themselves. The winning artwork at the national level is displayed at the National Missing Children’s Day ceremony. The national winner travels to Washington, DC, along with his/her parents, and teacher to receive an award and participate in the ceremony. It is a fitting time for our 5th grade students to focus on this project. As the nation remembers two children who represent missing children everywhere, Amber Hagerman and Etan Patz, we also celebrate the safe homecomings of children everywhere. Texas Center for the Missing invites all schools (public, private, or home) to participate in this unique contest in 2010.
“It is extraordinary to give our students an opportunity to compete nationally in an art contest of such importance, especially as it gives Texas educators a chance to teach their students more about safety,” said Beth Alberts, Texas Center for the Missing CEO “and, we know that there is great talent in our area and we hope to send one of our students to Washington, DC.”
About:
AMBER Alerts and Amber Hagerman: The AMBER Alert Program began in 1997 when Dallas-Fort Worth broadcasters teamed with local police to develop an early warning system to help find abducted children. AMBER stands for America's Missing: Broadcast Emergency Response and was created as a legacy to 9-year-old Amber Hagerman, who was kidnapped while riding her bicycle in Arlington, Texas, and then brutally murdered. Other states and communities soon set up their own AMBER plans as the idea was adopted across the nation. For more information about the AMBER Program, visit www.amberalert.gov.
National Missing Children’s Day and Etan Patz: On May 25, 1979, 6-year-old Etan Patz grabbed his school books and gave his mother a goodbye kiss before leaving to catch the bus to school. Etan's mother was never to see him again. In the years that followed, Etan became the symbol for lost children across America. Then, in 1982, President Reagan proclaimed May 25, the anniversary of Etan's disappearance, as National Missing Children's Day.
Texas Center for the Missing is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization dedicated to offering help, and hope, to the missing and their families. As the administrator of the Houston Regional Amber Alert, Texas Center for the Missing trains law enforcement on the Amber Alert system and provides 24-hour support and consulting to law enforcement agencies in the 13-county region in and around Houston. Safety education programs are also offered to the community to prevent Internet lures and child abductions, including S.A.F.E. child puppet shows, missing child prevention for parents, and Internet safety for all ages. Visit www.thetexascenter.org to learn more.
P.O. Box 420148 Houston, TX 77242-0148 (p) 713.599.0235
www.thetexascenter.org
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