Childhood is full of rewards and potential risks. As babies become toddlers, they are more prone to bumps, bruises, falls, and distractions. As children grow into teenagers, they become increasingly independent and are more apt to explore, live life, and socialize with less family supervision.
Fortunately, the potential risks children face throughout their lives can be lessened when adults discuss important safety concepts. Each day, parents and guardians can spend time talking to their children, setting appropriate limits, and helping them make good choices. Just minutes of prevention can make a huge impact in the life of a child. To help educate communities on these risks and ways to better protect the children in their lives, the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children (NCMEC) created the Take 25 Campaign.
Take 25 is a grassroots safety initiative created in honor of National Missing Children’s Day. Annually honored on May 25th, this day serves as a reminder to the nation to make child safety a national priority.
Designed to raise awareness of the issues surrounding missing and exploited children, the Take 25 Campaign encourages parents, guardians, educators, and others to take 25 minutes to talk to children about safety. With a focus on prevention, Take 25 provides free safety resources including safety tips, conversation starters, and event planning guides to help communities host local events.
In 2007, with the help of local and national partner organizations, more than 375 Take 25 child safety events were hosted in communities across the United States and abroad. While this was a great achievement for the first year, the Take 25 Campaign continues to grow, hosting thousands of events in hundreds or cities over the past 5 years. In 2012 campaign, more than 11,000 events were hosted in over 1,900 cities throughout the United States and abroad. With more than 800 local, regional, and national organizations partnering with the National Center, this year promises to be the most successful yet.