Tragedies can affect communities and society as a whole. Sometimes it only takes one person to make a difference that impacts us all.
It was 24 years ago, on June 9, 1995, that a little girl vanished at a Little League baseball game in the small town of Alma, Ark., within the River Valley at the edge of the majestic Ozark Mountains. Beautiful Morgan Chauntel Nick, age 6, with long blonde hair and blue eyes has not been seen since.
Morgan Nick is the eldest of three other children. She loved cats and according to her mother Colleen Nick, she was a shy little girl. A Girl Scout, Morgan loved bubble gum and said she wanted to be a doctor or a circus performer when she grew up.
The evening of her disappearance, a friend of the Nick family had invited them to a baseball game about 30 minutes away. Colleen told Dateline; the game started late at approximately 9:00 p.m. that night.
Morgan sat in the bleachers with her mom nearly the entirety of the game but towards the end, two kids, a boy and a girl, a few years older than Morgan, asked if Morgan could go catch fireflies with them.
Colleen recalls initially telling Morgan no, but other parents told the worried mother that the kids play in the parking lot all of the time and would be safe.
Colleen ended up telling Morgan she could go play with the other children. “She threw her arms around my neck, kissed my cheek, then the kids all ran out to the parking lot,” said Colleen. “I could turn my head and see she was right there in sight. I checked on them three or four times.”
At the end of the baseball game, Colleen watched as the team walked off the field, momentarily looking away from Morgan who was playing behind the bleachers. When she turned around, she could see the two other children, but Morgan was no longer with them.
Colleen asked the children where Morgan was, and they told her Morgan was at her car emptying sand out of her shoes. “Already, when I couldn’t see Morgan, my heart started beating really fast,” Colleen said in a Dateline interview. “We were somewhere we hadn’t been before. She wouldn’t go anywhere by herself, and there wasn’t even anywhere to go,” Colleen said. “There was no concession stands, no bathrooms.”
Confusion and panic set in for Colleen.
Within minutes a spectator called the police to report Morgan missing. Police responded within six minutes.
Chief Russell White of the Alma Police Department told Dateline that the initial officer on the scene immediately suspected “we might have a bigger problem.” “They did have a lot of manpower or resources, but they did a whole lot right that first night,” Colleen said.
“The other two kids that were playing with Morgan separately told the police about a creepy man in a red pick-up truck with a white camper shell on the back,” Colleen said.
Authorities immediately began an intensive investigation.
“We reached out for help from local agencies, the state police, the FBI,” Chief White said. “We were running a pretty big crew. The FBI brought in lots of extra people and resources and we did not have, like a computer system that could handle this kind of case, which helped tremendously.”
According to Colleen, Morgan’s case files fill up an entire room at the police department. “We have tons of tips coming in every week,” Chief White said. “It’s very unusual for a 24-year-old case to still have so many leads.”
Despite the thousands of leads received in Morgan’s case, she remains missing.
A Mother Fights Back
“She’s not a number. She’s not a statistic. She’s not a case file. She is a daughter, a sister, a granddaughter, a friend. And she is someone worth fighting for,” Colleen told Dateline. “If you’re not on the front line fighting for your daughter, no one else will. So, it is my job to make sure she never gets lost. Until someone can prove to me that Morgan is not coming home, then I am going to fight for her.”
In the years following Morgan’s disappearance, Colleen started the Morgan Nick Foundation to help prevent other families from going through what she has experienced, to raise awareness of other missing children, and educate the public on safety for children. The foundation also provides crucial support to other families of missing children.
Over the years Colleen has received a countless number of recognitions and awards from the FBI, state of Arkansas, to the International Homicide Investigator’s Association, for her work throughout the state of Arkansas throughout the country.
“When something so tragic happens to your child, there is a need to do something of great value,” said Colleen. “We are trying to fill the gap that wasn’t filled when we needed it the most.”
24 years later, Colleen continues to selflessly work within her community and nationwide to the benefit of families and children throughout the country.
The National Impact of John Walsh
We often forget there is a personal story behind many monumental efforts in this nation and John Walsh is certainly the epitome.
Adam Walsh, age 6, was a little boy whose disappearance and murder changed the way society looked at missing children.
On the afternoon of July 27, 1981, Adam’s mother took him shopping at a local mall in Hollywood, Fla. Reve Walsh had wanted to inquire about the price of a lamp at the Sears department store.
Momentarily, Reve left Adam at an Atari video game display where several other little boys were taking turns playing on the display. When Reve returned, she couldn’t find Adam or the other boys and was told by the store manager that the security guard had asked them all to leave the store.
Adam was paged over the intercom as his mother searched the store and mall for about an hour. She then called the Hollywood Police Department at approximately 1:55 p.m. to report Adam missing.
Tragically, on August 10, 1981, a severed head of a child was found in a drainage canal alongside the Florida Turnpike in Vero Beach, about 130 miles from Hollywood. It was confirmed it was Adam. His body has never been found.
A Legacy
Early on, Adam’s parents John and Reve Walsh were critical of the police investigation which led to John’s anti-crime activism and the creation of America’s Most Wanted which he is well known for.
Lesser known is his impact on laws and organizations for missing children. During the 1980s, John and other child advocates lobbied Congress to pass a law that would protect missing children and educate the public on the importance of child safety resulting in the Missing Children’s Assistance Act and the first national clearinghouse of information for missing children.
National Center for Missing & Exploited Children
In 1984, the United States Congress passed the Missing Children’s Assistance Act, signed by President Ronald Reagan creating the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children (NCMEC) and a 24-hour hotline 1-800-THE-LOST.
Headquartered in Arlington, Virginia, NCMEC has regional office in California, Florida, New York and Texas.
According to NCMEC, in 2018 there were 424,066 entries of missing children in the FBI National Crime Information Center (NCIC).
35 years later, NCMEC provides support to thousands of families of missing children each year, missing children’s case management, provides training to law enforcement agencies throughout the country, and offers numerous educational programs that fight child exploitation, sex trafficking, and provides critical information to keep our children safe.
Black & Missing Foundation
Tamika Huston vanished into thin air on or around May 27, 2004, from Spartanburg, S.C. and subsequently found murdered.
Spartanburg was Derrica Wilson’s hometown and she recalls watching as Tamika’s family struggled to gain any media coverage on a local or national level while Tamika was missing. A few months later, Natalee Holloway – a white woman – went missing and dominated news headlines, becoming a household name.
“It was heartbreaking to see the difference in the media attention these two cases were getting,” Derrica told Jet Magazine.
Derrica and her sister-in-law Natalie decided to team up to ensure other families did not face the obscurity that Tamika’s family had experienced. “We combined our professional backgrounds – mine in law enforcement and Natalie’s in media – to create an organization that joins the very important elements in the field of missing persons,” said Derrica.
Founded in 2008, a veteran law enforcement official and a public relations specialist began channeling their skills for a greater good.
Eleven years later, Black and Missing Foundation has become the primary voice for minority missing providing a platform of hope for the overwhelming number of missing persons of color.
AMBER Alert
On the afternoon of January 13, 1996, 9-year-old Amber Hagerman was last seen riding her bike in a parking lot near her home in Arlington, Texas. A witness reported seeing a man in a black, flat-bed truck snatch Amber from her bicycle.
Four days later, Amber’s body was found in a creek approximately 3.2 miles from her home. Her murder remains unsolved.
Area residents were outraged and began calling radio and television stations to vent their anger and to also offer suggestions to prevent such crimes in the future. One resident, Diana Simone suggested utilizing the Emergency Alert System (EAS) to notify the public when a child has been abducted so the public could also assist in the search. Simone followed up with a letter, with her only request to ensure the program would be dedicated to Amber Hagerman.
The program was eventually taken to NCMEC with a request to implement a national initiative that would eventually become known as the AMBER Alert. What began as a local effort in the area of the Dallas-Fort Worth area has grown into a seamless system used by every state in the country. Since the inception of the program in 1996, through December 31, 2018, 956 children have been safely recovered specifically as a result of an AMBER Alert being issued.
“When something so tragic happens to your child, there is a need to do something of great value,” as Colleen said. “We are trying to fill the gap that wasn’t filled when we needed it the most.” Most certainly, the advancements made in the last 35 years are proof the efforts of one person can make a difference.
You may be required to do a phone search, either to find out who is calling you because no information was left by a caller, or you’re researching a phone bill, or you know the caller but you need address information, or you wish to put an end to an undesirable person calling you, or you may be looking for a missing person.
This article reveals some simple ways anyone can harness the power of Internet search engines to trace missing persons online. The article is aimed at private individuals, and also at professional private investigators.
Smiles are supposed to last a lifetime. The smile displays excitement and enhances beauty. It is hard to smile comfortably with missing teeth.
Nice post. I was checking constantly this weblog and I am inspired! Extremely helpful info specially the remaining part 🙂 I deal with such information much. I used to be seeking this certain info for a long time. Thank you and good luck.
Respect to article author, some wonderful entropy.
you have an important blog right here! would you like to make some invite posts on my weblog?
Your style is so unique compared to many other people. Thank you for publishing when you have the opportunity,Guess I will just make this bookmarked.2
Great awesome things here. I?¦m very glad to look your post. Thank you so much and i’m taking a look forward to contact you. Will you please drop me a mail?
You completed a number of fine points there. I did a search on the topic and found mainly people will go along with with your blog.
Very interesting info !Perfect just what I was searching for! “The most wasted day of all is that on which we have not laughed.” by Sbastien-Roch Nicolas de Chamfort.
Hiya, I’m really glad I’ve found this information. Nowadays bloggers publish only about gossips and internet and this is actually annoying. A good site with interesting content, this is what I need. Thank you for keeping this web-site, I’ll be visiting it. Do you do newsletters? Can not find it.
Appreciate it for all your efforts that you have put in this. very interesting info .
I do not even know how I ended up here, but I thought this post was good. I don’t know who you are but definitely you’re going to a famous blogger if you aren’t already 😉 Cheers!
Loving the information on this web site, you have done outstanding job on the posts.
Wow, incredible weblog layout! How long have you been running a blog for? you made running a blog glance easy. The entire look of your site is great, let alone the content material!
Great write-up, I¦m normal visitor of one¦s blog, maintain up the excellent operate, and It’s going to be a regular visitor for a lengthy time.
Hello.This article was extremely motivating, particularly since I was looking for thoughts on this subject last Friday.
After all, what a great site and informative posts, I will upload inbound link – bookmark this web site? Regards, Reader.
I do agree with all the ideas you have presented in your post. They’re very convincing and will definitely work. Still, the posts are very short for beginners. Could you please extend them a little from next time? Thanks for the post.
Hello, i think that i saw you visited my blog so i came to “return the favor”.I am trying to find things to enhance my site!I suppose its ok to use some of your ideas!!
Wow! Thank you! I continually wanted to write on my site something like that. Can I include a fragment of your post to my website?
I like this post, enjoyed this one appreciate it for posting. “What is a thousand years Time is short for one who thinks, endless for one who yearns.” by Alain.
Hiya! I know this is kinda off topic however , I’d figured I’d ask. Would you be interested in trading links or maybe guest writing a blog post or vice-versa? My site addresses a lot of the same topics as yours and I believe we could greatly benefit from each other. If you are interested feel free to shoot me an e-mail. I look forward to hearing from you! Superb blog by the way!
It’s in reality a great and useful piece of information. I am glad that you shared this helpful info with us. Please keep us informed like this. Thanks for sharing.
Some truly great articles on this site, regards for contribution.
Hi! I just wanted to ask if you ever have any issues with hackers? My last blog (wordpress) was hacked and I ended up losing several weeks of hard work due to no back up. Do you have any methods to protect against hackers?
Real great info can be found on blog. “You have to learn that if you start making sure you feel good, everything will be okay.” by Ruben Studdard.
The next time I read a weblog, I hope that it doesnt disappoint me as much as this one. I imply, I know it was my option to read, but I really thought youd have something attention-grabbing to say. All I hear is a bunch of whining about one thing that you might repair if you werent too busy in search of attention.
Wow that was unusual. I just wrote an incredibly long comment but after I clicked submit my comment didn’t show up. Grrrr… well I’m not writing all that over again. Anyhow, just wanted to say wonderful blog!
You made some decent points there. I looked on the internet for the topic and found most persons will consent with your site.
F*ckin’ awesome things here. I’m very glad to see your post. Thanks a lot and i’m looking forward to contact you. Will you kindly drop me a e-mail?
I went over this web site and I think you have a lot of wonderful info, bookmarked (:.
excellent points altogether, you simply gained a brand new reader. What would you recommend in regards to your post that you made a few days ago? Any positive?
Whoa! This blog looks just like my old one! It’s on a totally different topic but it has pretty much the same layout and design. Excellent choice of colors!
Thanks for the sensible critique. Me & my neighbor were just preparing to do a little research on this. We got a grab a book from our local library but I think I learned more from this post. I am very glad to see such magnificent information being shared freely out there.
Wonderful website. A lot of helpful info here. I am sending it to several buddies ans also sharing in delicious. And certainly, thank you in your effort!
I got what you intend, regards for putting up.Woh I am lucky to find this website through google. “Do not be too timid and squeamish about your actions. All life is an experiment.” by Ralph Waldo Emerson.
I think this web site holds very excellent indited subject matter posts.
obviously like your web site however you have to take a look at the spelling on several of your posts. Many of them are rife with spelling issues and I in finding it very bothersome to inform the reality then again I will surely come back again.
What’s Taking place i’m new to this, I stumbled upon this I have found It absolutely useful and it has aided me out loads. I’m hoping to give a contribution & assist different customers like its helped me. Great job.
I loved as much as you will receive carried out right here. The sketch is attractive, your authored subject matter stylish. nonetheless, you command get got an edginess over that you wish be delivering the following. unwell unquestionably come further formerly again since exactly the same nearly a lot often inside case you shield this hike.
Does your site have a contact page? I’m having problems locating it but, I’d like to send you an e-mail. I’ve got some suggestions for your blog you might be interested in hearing. Either way, great blog and I look forward to seeing it grow over time.
Some genuinely nice and useful info on this web site, also I believe the design and style holds great features.