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speakup

Last week's article in the paper about the individual police are looking for who attempted to lure a child to his car in the Saint-Arthur area is proof that this can and does happen in our area as well as large cities. Some months ago, I wrote an article about educating your children on what to do if a similar situation happens. Please please please talk to your kids and devise a plan with them on what to do if they are approached by a stranger. In this case, this 9-year old girl ran and did not go near the car. She should be commended for the action she took. Without being overly dramatic, she may have just saved her life by doing so.

A stranger may be someone your child does not know, someone they have only seen around town, someone they have been told to stay away from, or someone they have been warned is not a friend. Strangers may look or dress like anyone — they could be wearing nice clothes or not, they could be young or old, they could act nicely or be mean. Strangers may lure children with a request to help them look for a lost puppy, or an offer of candy or other treat.

There are three strategies to teach kids about strangers — "no, go and tell". They should never talk to strangers, never take anything from a stranger and never go anywhere with a stranger. They say "no" for no talking to strangers, "go" to run away from the situation, and "tell" a parent or responsible adult, like a teacher. When the police are contacted, we take these calls very seriously and will take action.

Children need to know how to protect themselves by being vocal — shouting, yelling or screaming that a person is trying to harm or lure them. They need to learn that whatever they need to do to get away from a stranger is okay — they can kick, hit, bite or otherwise try to get away from the stranger. Telling a parent or other adult is very important.

People might say well what if it is actually a friend of the parents or neighbour etc...... Better to be safe than sorry. If it were a friend of the parent or neighbor, they would understand if the child ran from them. And if they don't, too bad. At least your child is still safe and that is the main issue. It's not over-reacting, it's about safety. Plain and simple.

If our children learn not to go toward strangers or to their vehicles, we are already ahead of the game and have taken a positive step toward avoiding child abduction or luring cases.

Talk about this plan with your children and grandchildren and help keep your kids prepared and safe.