Our World is re-emerging, coming alive. We are gathering once again in crowds, especially on this holiday weekend of fun, food and fireworks. Child safety experts warn that many of us may be “out of practice” in keeping our children safe while we gather in those big crowds that we haven’t seen for a year and a half.
They offer a bit of advice that may seem to be just common sense. However, it’s NOT common practice. If it was, fewer kids would suffer uneasy minutes or hours, and fewer parents would be on the edge of panic, searching for kids missing in a crowd.
What’s the suggestion? When you park and get out of the car at a fair, concert, fireworks show or other large-crowd event, snap a picture of your child on your phone. A picture showing exactly how your child looks right now: what he is wearing, how her hair is styled, what favorite toy might be carried along.
Then, if your child should wander away in that big crowd, you have an exact, accurate image of how they look right now to share with authorities, or simply with others in the crowd who are probably happy to help–if they know who they are looking for!
Some will protest, “I have dozens of pictures of my child on my phone.” That may be true, but those photos do not show precisely how your child looks right now–the moment they slipped out of your sight in a big crowd. So, experts say, take the time to snap that current picture before venturing into the crowd for Summer fun.
