BRAZOS COUNTY, Texas — Last year, the Amber Alert Network of the Brazos Valley (AANBV), informed the public about more than 50 missing children, but the organization says that doesn’t reflect an increase in missing teens, instead, it shows the growth of the network’s reach and efforts to get these kids back home.
While not every case is an abduction, the network wants the public to be aware that a child leaving their home is still an urgent matter.
AANBV Executive Director Chuck Fleeger explained, “There are a lot of instances where children voluntarily leave home but what we find is that a lot of time in that situation is kids are running from something or running to something, and usually, its not a good situation. Their basic needs are not met they are at a higher risk of victimization and exploitation and so that’s why we think its super important notify the public about any missing child.”
Laurie Naumann from Family and Youth Services says children can voluntarily leave home for a variety of different reasons, but the relationship between the child and the parent has a big influence on the youth.
“I think what happens lot of the time is you have a parent that’s struggling financially or they’re struggling with their own heavy stress load and then you have a child whose feeling anxious and dealing with heir own things and there’s a lack of healthy ways to communicate that,” Naumann said.
Her advice to parents is simple, but goes a long way in keeping a child safe.
Naumann explained, “I always encourage parents to offer their children the same respect they want in return because that’s the basis of the relationship where the child will actually want to tell you what’s going on in their life and you listen to them.”