Smart gives tips on abduction prevention

By LAURIE KIEFABERTribune Staff WriterSaturday, April 01, 2006
Ed Smart was in town to promote KinderVision's “The Greatest Save” child safety campaign and stress the importance of preventing harm to children Friday.Elizabeth Smart's father from the Salt Lake City, Utah area helped lobby Congress for passage of the Amber Alert for the protection and rescue of other children. Elizabeth was abducted from her home on June 5, 2002 by a man who had done work at the Smart home. She was found March 12, 2003 in a nearby town and reunited with her family.
Experiencing a child abduction is “like an open wound that never heals,”
Smart said after the press conference Friday. “Elizabeth was abducted, but the rest of the family were victims too. ... Even babies can be traumatized by what happens to the family.”At 18, Elizabeth is a harpist and plans to study at Brigham Young University in the fall, possibly majoring in music, her father said. While his daughter, wife and five other children are doing well, Smart emphasized abduction can happen to anyone.
“Everyone thinks it can't happen to me,” he said. “It can happen if you're rich or poor or live in the city or a rural community. There are enough out there it can happen and it happens on a daily basis.”The lobbyist for Amber Alert legislation said there are three main things parents can do for their children. First, they can sit down and talk and watch them, and second, prepare by having identification information ready if they are abducted and get online to know where the predators live.
Steve Roddel, president and CEO of www.familywatchdog.us, also was present Friday. His Web site shows maps of registered sex offenders in 44 states. He started the site because he learned there was a serial rapist living 600 feet behind his back door and that person had a better view of his daughter playing in the back yard than he did. Since starting the site, he's had many people say they did not know the magnitude of the problem. There are about 8,000 sex offenders living in Indiana and 4,000 convicted sex offenders move daily in the U.S.In addition, 76 percent of serial rapists have been molested as children, 40 percent of child molesters were molested as children and 30 percent of juvenile delinquents were molested, Smart said.“Our goal with Doug (Sebastian) and ‘The Greatest Save' is to stop child molestation in one generation,” Roddel said.Sebastian is KinderVision's founder.The third thing parents can do is educate their children on being proactive. The KinderVision Web site and their programs have been part of the child education process for years with videos designed to help children learn how to avoid being hurt by strangers.Part of their latest campaign is “The Greatest Save” questionnaire, which asks children of all ages safety questions to prevent their abduction and exploitation. If they answer all 20 correctly, they can print out a certificate to be redeemed at one of several local retailers or fulfillment centers for a colorful wristband. The quiz also lets parents know what their children do and don't know about safety.“It's not difficult to teach them without scaring them,” Sebastian said. “You teach them to cross the street. A place or people aren't necessarily bad; it's the actions they take ... and knowing how to respond.”Smart said none of his children are allowed to go anywhere alone.“I'm very paranoid and tell the kids you have to put up with me,” he said. “... I don't know that I could go through (an abduction) again.”Roddel's Web site also lists employer addresses for the registered sex offenders listed on the site. It's not a crime for businesses to employ sex offenders, but parents need to be aware of who they're getting services from. Many sex offenders work in carpentry and plumbing and may go to people's homes.“It comes down to teaching your children a life skill,” Smart said. “(She) may end up using (the skills) as a young woman ... Nobody deserves to be assaulted.“... It's so much easier to take preventive steps than deal with the aftermath.”The KinderVision Web site also offers daily safety tips for everyone.“We're as content rich as any web site in the country,” Douglas said. “I encourage families to take advantage of that.”In addition to “The Greatest Save” safety quizzes and educational videos, KinderVision recently produced a music video, which will be available soon, and safety educational materials for children from kindergarten through high school.KinderVision is a national child safety education program founded in 1991 in Carlsbad, Calif. as a result of the kidnapping and murder of seven-year-old Leticia Hernandez. Sebastian has dedicated his life to protecting children and has succeeded in advancing child safety initiatives in 47 states.“The Greatest Save” wristband “fulfillment centers”:*Korner Kurl Ice Cream Parlor, Peru*Absolutely Fabulous Salon, Peru*Brandt's Harley-Davidson, Wabash