Child ID kits handed out to Salt Lake students

Salt Lake City has had its fair share of high-profile missing children over the past several years.

"Unfortunately, I have been involved in far too many missing-children cases in my career," Salt Lake Police Chief Chris Burbank told a group of reporters, parents and school-district officials during a news conference this week.

But in addition to the high-profile cases, there are also the incidents that don't make the news, such as a child who goes to a friend's house after school but forgets to tell a parent or legal guardian.

Regardless of the circumstances, investigators know the faster information about a missing child is released, the faster that child can be recovered, Burbank said.

But sometimes, parents don't have the needed information readily available. Detectives often have to go through a parent's digital camera to find a recent picture of their missing child. Parents, because they are upset, sometimes can't remember or don't know simple facts like how tall their child is or how much he or she weighs.

In an effort to take proactive measures to increase the chances of a missing child being found in a timely manner, Burbank and the Salt Lake School District announced an initiative Monday to distribute 20,000 child ID kits to every elementary school in the district.

Flanked by several dozen elementary-school students at Washington Elementary, 420 N. 200 West, Burbank said the intent was not to be paranoid about society but to "minimize our exposure to risk."

"Be prepared and ready to face anything," he said.

Carley Price plans to fill out the ID kit immediately for her 5-year-old daughter, Sophia.

"I think it's great," she said. "Anything we can do to have an extra safety measure with our kids, anything to give an extra peace of mind — it can't hurt, that's for sure."

Price said as a parent, you never stop worrying about your kids. Fear can't override everything else, she said. But taking precautions, such as the child ID kit or making sure a child is never alone, helps minimize potential risks.

Many of the students who go to Washington Elementary walk to school, said Katrina Stucki, the PTA president, who has two children who attend the school.

"I think you can never talk about safety too much with your kids," she said.

Stucki said she has a password for her 6-year-old daughter, Vivian, so she knows when it's OK to go with someone when mom isn't around.

When asked what her mother told her about strangers, Vivian shyly replied, "To not talk to them." And if a stranger did approach, "Run away."

The child ID kits also present parents with a good opportunity to talk to their children about stranger danger while filling them out with their children, Burbank said.

The ID kits were written in English and Spanish. Each card contains valuable information such as hair color, eye color, height, weight and birth date. A photograph of each child was also provided for the cards by Lifetouch Photography.

e-mail: preavy@desnews.com