White House Conference
on
Missing, Exploited, and Runaway Children
VCA Executive Director invited to attend monumental, first-ever conference 
October 2, 2002, Washington, D.C.

Georgia K. Hilgeman-Hammond, Executive Director and Founder of the Vanished Children's Alliance, attended the White House Conference on Missing, Exploited, and Runaway Children held in Washington, D.C., October 2, 2002.  Conference presenters included White House Cabinet Members, experts in the field of child abduction, law enforcement personnel, families of victim children, adults victimized as children, corporate leaders, along with other Federal, state and local officials.

The focus of the conference was prevention of child victimization, the topics included family and non-family abduction, child pornography, trafficking of children, runaway and homeless youth, and Internet safety. Speakers included President George W. Bush, Attorney General John Ashcroft, Secretary of State Colin Powell, and FBI Director Robert Mueller.

"The kidnapping of a child is every parent’s worst nightmare. Yet too many have suffered. Laura and I met with parents who have had the most precious person in their lives suddenly and brutally taken away from them. Some of these parents were eventually reunited with their children. Some are still hoping, and waiting. Some know they will never see their loved ones again in this earthly life." President George Bush

"I kept looking at these pictures from an angle, looking at them as a father, looking at them as a grandfather, looking at them and wondering what would be going through my mind and my heart and my soul if one of these kids was my child, or my grandchild, or someone I loved – and I didn’t know where that child was, and I didn’t know how that child was being dealt with or how that child might be abused." Secretary of State Colin Powell

"Any plan to combat obscenity must begin with the realization that the primary goal is deterrence, born from a well-coordinated and well-executed strategy. We may not be able to eradicate completely the criminal behavior associated with obscenity, but we can and will change the pattern of behavior by aggressive law enforcement." Attorney General John Ashcroft

Georgia K. Hilgeman-Hammond commends the Bush Administration for hosting this conference. According to Ms. Hilgeman-Hammond, "Since 1980, VCA has worked diligently to keep children safe, stop the victimization of children, and to facilitate their healing. As a VCA representative I was very proud to have participated in the White House Conference. I hope this will be the impetus for a renewed national commitment to and focus on, our most precious resource, our children."