My son, Ryan, has followed a friend in running away and I have no way of contacting him. I am contacting any and all of my online communities in an attempt to get the word and pictures out every way possible.
This community probably understands better than any others how scary this is with an Asperger's child. I haven't gone over what to do if you find yourself in the middle of Montana, with no money, no cell phone, etc. I don't even know if he will apply what I have taught him to this new and probably chaotic environment.
If anyone has any ideas on how to push this news around the Internet more, please do it. I have so far done two news releases, they are at http://blackhillsportal.com/npps/story.cfm?id=2696 and http://blackhillsportal.com/npps/story.cfm?ID=2697.
Carolyn
My son too ran away but only
My son too ran away but only for about 1/2 hour- worst 1/2 hour of my life (other than the diagnosis) I dont remember what the name is of the company - you can do a search, but there is a GPS tracking device that can be put in the shoe of your child enabling the authorities (depending on how compitent they are) which makes it much easier to find someone. They are used with cell phones now. Good Luck - the runners are difficult
OMG, what about an amber
OMG, what about an amber alert?
Ditto on the OMG. My son
Ditto on the OMG. My son and I are both praying for you and that Ryan and Shannyn find their way home - soon.
Ideas - a) alert the Border crossings b) try to get some of their friends to start a "network" plea through the social networking sites that are popular with kids c) check with hostels, missions and the llike d) keep your chin up and know that you have found some friends here.
After 4 days, they have
After 4 days, they have finally made contact and we are arranging their return. The police told me he was too old for an Amber alert. That's about the only straight forward thing they told me. What I have learned through this is that the police do not really do anything to actively look for runaways of 16 years old. They put a notice on some list so if the kids get picked up by law enforcement for breaking a law, then they can be found by the police. In hindsight, I would have taken out after them immediately if I had known this information since I had clues of their ultimate destination and route. I would have only been 3 hours behind them. Immediately hiring a good private investigator would be resources well spent as opposed to wasting time filing police reports.
It's very much up to the parents and the people who care about the kids to find them. I think its important to get this message to as many people as possible so parents will know to kick in their own resources immediately instead of waiting a couple days thinking the police are working it.
Thank you everyone for the prayers and give your special child a hug
Oh thank GOD. I have been so
Oh thank GOD. I have been so worried about this.
I was afraid you'd never find them or that they'd
be found dead ugh. What a relief.
Thanks CJ for letting us
Thanks CJ for letting us know they're OK and coming home. I have been giving my son extra big hugs every morning since you first posted your story. I cannot imagine the fear you must have been going through these last few days. My son has faced many challenges and I know at times he wanted just to run away and start over someplace else. Words cannot express how glad I am that he never did. When you first made your post, my first thought was indeed - there but for the grace of God go I.
I hope you don't mind if we keep you and Ryan in our prayers at little longer while you work out whatever issues that prompted their taking such a drastic step. Peace be with you both.
Here are some URLs to some
Here are some URLs to some articles and websites I found related to runaways and missing children:
Teen Runaways: A Parents' Nightmare, by Kat Yares, Feb 18, 2005 - http://www.associatedcontent.com/article/116/teen_runaways.html
National Runaway Switchboard - http://www.1800runaway.org/
Operation Lookout - http://www.operationlookout.org/
What about contacting a
What about contacting a billboard company? I heard of somebody who did that one time and they
werent even charged. He must be in love with this girl, gee kids do dumb things ugh, even when
they're "normal."
HEY what about youtube???
HEY what about youtube???