In the 12 years since its creation, the Fort Lauderdale-based nonprofit A Child Is Missing has helped locate more than 600 missing people around the country, and the number keeps growing. The group announced its 600th successful assisted recovery last month.

The missing persons recovery group, with only 12 full-time and 19 part-time staffers, has been operating out of the 2,500-square-foot building on Southeast 17th Street for six years, while working off an annual budget of $900,000 provided mostly by donations and grants.

Founder Sherry Friedlander said the idea for the nonprofit came to her in 1996, when a project for an advertising and marketing firm she owned fell through.

“I was sitting there with four high-speed computers,” she said. “Suddenly the thought came: look for missing children. Like a lightning bolt.”

From the beginning, Friedlander had national ambitions, and the timing was right. She traveled to Tallahassee and met with former Sen. Howard Forman, who guided her through the creation process.

Within minutes of a missing persons report, the group can begin sending out a description to residents of the search area. They can also make dozens of alert calls from a database of 130 million phone numbers, according to Vice President Claudia Corrigan.

By utilizing geomapping and satellite systems, workers can then use maps to develop a better search area, said Ron Bannis.

Friedlander said she is pushing the Legislature to pass U.S. House Bill 1933, known as A Child Is Missing Alert and Recovery Act. Introduced by Rep. Ron Klein, the bill passed the House of Representatives in July and if it passes the Senate, would provide annual federal grants to the group.

Even with additional funding, Friedlander said, the organization would likely open 10 smaller offices around the country and hire 95 additional workers.

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