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The ceremony re-emphasized the Department's commitment to bring missing children home safely and highlighted the progress made and initiatives to protect children developed and implemented by the Department, its components, and State and local partners. Administrator Flores recognized many of these important milestones during his comments made throughout the ceremony.

President Reagan proclaimed the first National Missing Children's Day in May 1983. Since that time, family members, friends, public agencies, and private organizations have gathered throughout the country to rededicate their determination to find the Nation's missing children, celebrate heartwarming stories of recovery, and honor those who can only be present in their hearts and memories.

The ceremony began with a video presentation highlighting the achievements and developments of child protection during the past 8 years. In his keynote remarks, Attorney General Mukasey praised the law enforcement personnel and private citizens dedicated to finding and returning abducted children.

It is an honor to pay tribute to individuals who are committed to making extraordinary differences in the lives of children. These honorees set the bar and inspire others to persevere in their efforts to defend and protect innocent children.

At the ceremony, Attorney General Mukasey recognized the following awardees:

• Two detectives, Justin Spence, Florida Internet Crimes Against Children (ICAC) Task Force, and Sgt. Jay Poupard, Michigan ICAC Task Force, each received the Attorney General's Special Commendation Award for their prompt actions and information sharing, which saved the life of an 8-year-old girl. Their actions also prevented the further distribution of pornographic images of children.

• Lt. Jessica Farnsworth from the Utah Attorney General's Office of Investigations received the AMBER Alert Law Enforcement Award for her efforts in the creation of the Utah Attorney General's Child Abduction Response Team, in which she successfully recruited dedicated Federal, State, and local investigators and highly skilled support staff.

• Two radiological technicians, Lisa Ahlbrandt and Sue Midgett, from Norfolk, VA, were presented the AMBER Alert Citizen Award for their intuitive actions and fortitude in safely recovering an abducted infant who was the subject of an AMBER Alert.

• Trooper First Class Becky North, a Maryland State Police Officer, received the Child Protection Award for her efforts in investigating a child abuse case in which a sex offender was charged with more than 100 criminal charges and received a 99-year prison sentence.

• Doyoun Park, a fifth grader from Quail Hollow Elementary School in Sandy, Utah, was selected as winner of the 2008 National Missing Children's Day Art Contest. Her artwork will be used as the logo for next year's Missing Children's Day festivities.

The release of a new OJJDP publication, You’re Not Alone: The Journey From Abduction to Empowerment, also was announced during the ceremony. You’re Not Alone was written by and for survivors of abduction and offers shared experience on the process of recovering. Administrator Flores praised the authors for their sacrifice and unselfishness in sharing their experiences with other survivors:

I am so proud of these young men and women. They shared their thoughts, feelings, and insights into their personal journeys—through the days, weeks, and months following their return home—in the hopes that they could offer more comfort to other children and help them put their lives back together.

(For more information on You’re Not Alone: The Journey From Abduction to Empowerment, see the New Publications page of this OJJDP News @ a Glance.)

Ernie Allen, President and CEO of the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children, praised the efforts of the private sector in working with public sector agencies to return missing children. He singled out the news media for their continued practice of publishing images of missing children to raise awareness, and credit card companies for adopting practices that have significantly reduced the usage of credit cards in online child pornography transactions. Allen said, as a result of the collaborations between the private and public sectors:

More missing children are coming home safely today than at any other time in our nation's history.

Activist Ed Smart also gave remarks summing up his experience as the parent of an abducted child. (His daughter, Elizabeth, is one of the authors of OJJDP's new survival abduction guide.) He urged bipartisan legislative reform and praised the AMBER Alert system:

It sends a clear message to kidnappers: Don't do it because, if you do, the whole nation will be looking for you.

The ceremony also highlighted the second anniversary of the Department's Project Safe Childhood (PSC) initiative, which brings together Federal, State, and local investigators and prosecutors to combat online child exploitation crimes. The Department implemented PSC in 2006 and has built the initiative upon integrated partnerships involving international, Federal, State, and local law enforcement and prosecutors.

The ceremony concluded with a performance from the Benjamin Orr Elementary School Choir of Washington, DC. The Office of Justice Programs (OJP) has had a relationship with the Orr School since 1991 as part of DOJ's volunteer outreach program. To see a full photo gallery from the day's events, please click here.

Attorney General Michael B. Mukasey

The Benjamin Orr Elementary School Choir