Each year, approximately 600,000 individuals are reported missing in the United States, and the numbers are much higher worldwide.
The hope for National Missing Persons Day is to raise awareness and educate the public about people who go missing.
National Missing Persons Day Timeline
Creation of the FBI National Crime Information Center (NCIC)
The FBI launches NCIC, a nationwide computerized index that soon adds missing person files, giving law enforcement a central tool to record and search missing persons across jurisdictions.
Disappearance of Etan Patz Spurs Modern Missing-Child Movement
Six-year-old Etan Patz vanishes in New York City, becoming one of the first missing children featured in national media and on posters, and helping catalyze new laws and awareness around missing children.
Founding of the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children (NCMEC)
The U.S. Congress and private partners established NCMEC as a national clearinghouse to assist in cases of missing and sexually exploited children, professionalizing search, poster, and hotline efforts.
DNA Identification Begins to Aid Missing and Unidentified Persons Cases
As forensic DNA profiling matures and the FBI launches the national CODIS database, investigators increasingly use DNA to identify unidentified remains and link them to long‑term missing person reports.
Creation of the AMBER Alert Child Abduction System
After the abduction and murder of 9‑year‑old Amber Hagerman in Texas, broadcasters and police developed the AMBER Alert program, using real‑time public alerts to help recover abducted children.
National Missing and Unidentified Persons System (NamUs) Established
The U.S. Department of Justice funds and launches NamUs, a national, online, searchable system that links missing person reports with unidentified remains to assist families, law enforcement, and medical examiners.
NamUs Becomes a National Program within the National Institute of Justice
The National Institute of Justice assumes full management of NamUs, expanding its forensic services, databases, and family support to improve the resolution of missing and unidentified persons cases nationwide.
History of National Missing Persons Day
National Missing Persons Day was founded by Jo Ann Lowitzer with the purpose of building an increased awareness in the public about the needs of those who have gone missing.
After her daughter, Alexandria, went missing in 2010, Lowitzer originally started by working to designate her daughter’s birthday, February 3, as an annual missing persons day for the city of Houston.
She dreamed bigger, later promoting the idea of Texas Missing Persons Day on April 26, which is the day her daughter went missing.
Eventually, in 2018 Lowitzer was successful in getting National Missing Persons Day recognized. Although it has not gotten easier in the more than a decade since her daughter went missing, Lowitzer continues to hope that raising awareness for this day will help in bringing missing persons home.
In addition to this day that is observed in the US, since 2013 the government of Ireland has also recognized its own National Missing Persons Day that takes place annually on the first Wednesday in December.
How to Celebrate National Missing Persons Day
Get involved with this important event by observing National Missing Persons Day with some of these activities:
Share Information about Missing Persons
One of the most important ways that people can be encouraged to observe National Missing Persons Day is by sharing information, no matter how small or inconsequential it might seem.
When police investigate the disappearance of a person, they put the pieces of a puzzle together through clues that narrow down what they believe to be the time and location of the incident.
Someone who has received a phone call or text, had a visual sighting or knew any piece of information about a person before they went missing can help by sharing.
Host a Missing Persons Vigil
For many people, the experience of a family member or friend who has gone missing can be devastating to individuals and communities. One opportunity that can be helpful in honor of National Missing Persons Day is to hold a vigil for those who have gone missing.
This could be a community gathering at a park, school or some other public space where people are invited to share memories, light candles, sing songs and perhaps hold a moment of silence.
Learn More About Missing Persons
In recent decades, the ability to track and trace missing persons through the use of technology has acted as an important tool and aid for solving mysterious cases. And the more awareness is raised through individuals and communities, the better the opportunities of finding people who are missing.
Get involved with National Missing Persons Day by learning and sharing some interesting facts online or in person to raise awareness. Consider some of these to get started:
Since 1984, the National Center for Missing and Exploited children has received more than 5 million calls
The first national clearinghouse for missing adults was created in 2000 and signed by US President Bill Clinton
The AMBER alert was created in 1996 after the disappearance of 9-year-old Amber Hagerman
