Independent Expression Radio

Unfortunately the world we live in is not the trusting, caring environment that many of us grew up in. Today young people must be alert and aware of everything around them and we adults must be more vigilant for them. Even though we may be more careful and alert children still vanish, sometimes abducted by family members, sometimes by strangers.

My guest this week is Antonia Plemmons, or Tonia, as she is called by her friends. Tonia became a "left behind parent" due to parental abduction in 1994. After the legal system failed in recovering her family, she began, out of necessity, an exhaustive private search for her own children. "I founded a search team for my own children. After five and half years [I] located and legally recovered them. I continue now to help other parents while teaching my now grown children how to heal from the abuse they suffered from their abductor."

In 2001 Tonia directed her team to plan for the future. Her goal was to change the way America thinks about missing children and the way the country looks for the missing child of any age. In 2002 she and her husband, James, launched the nation's first dedicated web ticker for Amber Alerts data. Working on a grass roots level they managed to get Amber Alert accepted around the country. In 2004, with help from thousands of volunteers, Team Amber Alert was determined by the IRS to be a Public Charity. Team Amber Alert has since teamed with other non-profits to continue the mission to change the way we find missing children.