Saturday, August 22, 2009

National Missing Persons Organizations merge to offer state-of-the-art safety education for all ages, and critical resources to families with missing

Bentonville, AR. – Let’s Bring Them Home (LBTH), a Bentonville, Arkansas non-profit offering safety education to children and families, as well as resources to families with missing loved ones, today announced a merger with the National Center for Missing Adults (NCMA), a nonprofit organization that acts as the national clearinghouse for missing adults, as well as provides services and coordination between various government agencies, law enforcement, media and most importantly, families of missing adults.

LBTH, established in 2005, specializes in safety education, while NCMA, a sixteen-year-old nonprofit, has been the primary service provider to law enforcement and the families of missing adults throughout the country and maintains a repository of information regarding disappearances of individuals who have been determined by law enforcement to be “at risk” due to diminished mental capacity, such as Alzheimer’s disease, those with physical disabilities, individuals whose disappearance is suspicious, and/or when foul play is suspected.

In addition, NCMA provides specialized training to law enforcement throughout the United States and has been acknowledged by the United States Department of Justice for resolving 99.8% of all missing adult reports during Hurricane Katrina.
According to NCMA founder, Kym Pasqualini, who headed up NCMA, the merger will provide families across the nation with quality safety education and services to families for missing adults.
“At a time when nonprofits throughout the country are struggling in a weakened economy it is important for nonprofit organizations to explore how to better diversify resources. LBTH and NCMA are a perfect match with services that complement each other,” explains Pasqualini.

"This merger will enable us to continue to fulfill our mission and broaden services."
The merger, effective immediately, will allow NCMA financial stability for the first time since 2006 when the organization experienced significant funding cuts from the government. Corporate headquarters as well as a safety education center for the newly merged organization will open in Northwest Arkansas, while the office of case management will remain in Phoenix, Arizona. Employees at both former organizations will be retained.

Amy Smith, Executive Director of Let's Bring Them Home, believes this merger will make a huge impact on safety education and on services for missing adults. "The merge of our organizations was a natural fit - like two pieces of a puzzle that fit together perfectly - all for the benefit of children and families throughout the United States."

As the newly merged organization now entitled Let’s Bring Them Home & The National Center for Missing Adults transitions, the families of missing adults can expect services to re-launch in full force beginning October 10, 2009. Over the coming months, Let’s Bring Them Home & the National Center for Missing Adults will launch expanded programming, training, and services to families across the United States.

"This organizational merger," explains Smith, "will enable us to fulfill the simple but important motto that we strive to live out daily: our passion is prevention, but our heart is with the missing."

For more information on the newly merged organization, contact Amy Smith at 479-871-1059 or via email atletsbringthemhome@gmail.com or Kym Pasqualini at 602-769-4597 or via email at k.pasqualini@missingadults.org.

For more information on the LBTH/NCMA merger visit: http://www.lbth.org or http://www.theyaremissed.org

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