A world-first step-by-step guide to help find missing persons has been launched online.
Loren O’Keeffe, whose brother Daniel has been missing since 2011, today launched the Missing Persons Guide to provide practical advice to families looking for missing loved ones.
The Missing Persons Guide draws on many of the lessons Loren learnt from her ‘Dan Come Home’ Facebook campaign that reached over 30,000 people.
The Guide offers practical guidance for the first 48-hours after someone is reported missing, right through to support for families whose loved ones have been missing long-term.
It includes a toolkit of templates for creating missing persons posters and media releases, as well as practical advice on how best to raise awareness through the media and details of support networks.
“It effectively cuts down time wastage,” Loren said.
“Obviously in such situations time is of the essence, and there are much better chances of finding someone if you can act quicker.”
Designed by Loren with the help of five other families of missing persons, the Guide seeks to remedy the clear lack of support and guidance available to families in the O’Keeffe’s situation.
“There wasn’t a central place that families of missing persons could go to for help and advice, or even just to talk about the experience with other families,” Loren said.
“We simply didn’t know where to start.”
Loren started the Missing Persons Advocacy Network in 2013 to help families navigate the road ahead, after receiving numerous calls for advice herself.
Roughly one Australian goes missing every 15 minutes; with more than 35 000 reported missing each year.
Loren hopes the Guide will be the start of many significant changes for finding missing persons.
In particular, she is seeking corporate partnerships with transport and accommodation providers to help alleviate the financial burden that families face.
Loren herself had to quit her job in order to run the ‘Dan Come Home’ campaign.
Loren hopes that successful international models, such as the UK charity Missing People, will help guide Australian developments in the near future.
She firmly believes that the Government should provide more support to those searching for missing persons.
