The Winter Haven Police Department fingerprints children for free
and then gives this vital information to the parents to assist law
enforcement in finding a lost child or for identification purposes.
Child Safety
Parents, guardians, and adults who care for children face constant
challenges when trying to help keep children safer in today's
fast-paced world. For decades, children were taught to stay away
from "strangers." But this concept is difficult for children to
grasp and often the perpetrator is someone the child knows. It is
more beneficial to help build children's confidence and teach them
to respond to a potentially dangerous situation, rather than
teaching them to look out for a particular type of person.
If Your Child is Missing
Act immediately if you believe that your child is
missing.
If your child is missing from
home, search the house checking closets, piles of laundry, in
and under beds, inside old refrigerators—wherever a child may
crawl or hide.
If you still cannot find your
child, immediately call 9-1-1.
If your child disappears in a
store, notify the store manager or security office. Then
immediately call 9-1-1. Many stores have a
Code Adam
plan of action—if a child is missing in the store, employees
immediately mobilize to look for the missing child.
When you call law enforcement,
provide your child's name, date of birth, height, weight, and
any other unique identifiers such as eyeglasses and braces. Tell
them when you noticed that your child was missing and what
clothing he or she was wearing.
For
more child safety tips you can visit The National Center for Missing
and Exploited Children at
http://www.missingkids.com/
