Pioneers Honored: 40 Years of NCMEC
John and Revé Walsh, co-founders of the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children (NCMEC), were honored last night for dedicating their lives to the protection of America’s children after the devastating abduction and murder of their 6-year-old son, Adam.
During a celebration of NCMEC’s 40th anniversary, John and Revé were joined at the historic National Building Museum in Washington, D.C. by many of those who helped make NCMEC a reality. Their voices filled the cavernous Great Hall, paying tribute to John and Revé’s legacy and the more than 426,000 missing children NCMEC has helped law enforcement recover – some missing for years, even decades.
Michelle DeLaune, CEO and president of NCMEC
“John and Revé, I know you’ve always emphasized how many people it took to make NCMEC a reality,” said Michelle DeLaune, president and CEO of NCMEC. “Imagine what the world would look like without the National Center. We’re needed now more than ever.”
Many people know John as the relentless crimefighter and the host of America's Most Wanted and In Pursuit with John Walsh, which he hosts along with his son, Callahan, who is now an integral part of NCMEC. What ignited John’s outrage was Adam's abduction on July 27, 1981, from a Florida shopping mall and the lack of help to find him.
After two excruciating weeks, Adam's body was found in a canal 100 miles away. He’d been abducted by a convicted serial killer in a case that shocked the nation.
John and Revé vowed that no other family should have to suffer a similar ordeal and helped galvanize a missing children’s movement in this country. Three years later, with the help of many, NCMEC opened its doors.
The Great Hall at the National Building Museum filled with those who made NCMEC a reality.
The evening was a remarkable video journey through 40 years, showing how the safety net for children has grown stronger and our nation’s children are safer today than ever before.
Over the decades, crimes against children have evolved, and so, too, has NCMEC – particularly when the internet became part of everyday life.
NCMEC Executive Director Callahan Walsh, son of John and Revé.
“By the late ‘90s, the internet was changing everything, and was rapidly becoming the primary way offenders were communicating with each other and sharing child sexual abuse material,” DeLaune said.
In response, NCMEC created the CyberTipline, which last year alone received more than 36 million reports of suspected online child sexual exploitation. With help from our many devoted federal and private partners, NCMEC has harnessed emerging technology and has become the largest and most influential child protection organization in the country.
What began as just a few dedicated people in 1984 grew into a nonprofit organization based in Alexandria, Virginia with more than 450 employees, hundreds of volunteers and three branches. Many of those who worked for NCMEC over 40 years were there last night.
(L-R) Robbie Callaway, John, Sue Callaway, Jay Howell and Revé. (Photo right) NCMEC Chairman of Board, Jon Grosso.
Jay Howell, NCMEC’s first executive director, was deeply involved in some of the legislation that created NCMEC. He helped build the organization and crafted many of the child protection laws we rely on today. Robbie Callaway was also one of the original people instrumental in NCMEC’s creation, working closely with John, Jay and Revé.
DeLaune, who has worked at NCMEC for many years and now leads the organization, said she’s still amazed at the impact NCMEC has had on the lives of countless children and families.
“With every fiber of my being, I believe in the power of NCMEC, its people and our lifesaving mission,” DeLaune said. “I have witnessed the difference we make – one child at a time, one family at a time.”
(Photos: Sarah Baker and Claire Edkins)