Hello my friends. I haven't posted much for the last couple of weeks due to lots of reasons beyond my control....but had to take the time to tell you of a incredible true story that came to an end here today.
2 days ago a 3 year old baby wandered out of his yard and into the national forrest about 25 miles southwest of me. After a all night search for him involving hundreds of volunteers,,,,,there was not a sign of him found, The child was wearing only a diaper, a pajama top and a pair of tennis shoes. It has rained constantly for the last few days here with overnight temps dropping into the 40s. The area the boy was lost in is among the most rugged wilderness to be found in Missouri -Thousands of acres of woods ,brush, mountains,boulders, sink holes. caves along with many rain swolen creeks and small lakes. It is also the home of coyotes, black bear, rattlesnakes and even a few cougars.....not a good place for a small child to be lost in for a couple of days and nights.
Yesterday one of the childs shoes was found on the banks of a lake about 3/4 of a mile from his house....and the worst was feared. Water rescue teams began dragging the lake.
Another cold rainy night passed with no sign of the missing child.
This morning the sheriff put out a call for volunteers to help with another ground search and I along with hundreds of others answered the call. By this time the boy had been lost in the woods for more than 48 hours and hopes were dimming for finding him alive....or for finding him at all. Grown men have been lost and never found in these same woods.
After a cold wet day of slipping and sliding and fighting the thick brush...as we were broken into teams and searching grids....at about 4:00 pm this afternoon a team member with a cell phone recieved a texted message that brought many grown men.....including myself to tears of joy......2 words on the message.....FOUND ALIVE!
A fellow volunteer who was only able to search today because he could not work because of the rain....heard a small cry from the middle of a brush pile...and found the boy in the middle of it.....3 miles from home, naked,scratched up, and hungry....but overall in good shape! I have seldom seen so many people brought together for a common purpose and become so over whelmed with such joy when the boy was found! He is being kept overnight in a local hospital for observation -but is in good condition. This should be a special mothers day for his mother. Below is a article from a Kansas City newspaper.
ST. LOUIS | A 3-year-old southeast Missouri boy missing for more than two days was found alive Wednesday afternoon three miles from his rural home.
A volunteer found Joshua Childers in the rugged terrain of the Mark Twain National Forest, Madison County Sheriff David Lewis said. The boy had slipped out of his house more than 50 hours earlier, wearing a T-shirt, sneakers and a pull-up diaper. Joshua was taken to the Iron County Hospital in Pilot Knob at 4:42 p.m. for evaluation in the emergency room. Hospital CEO Ed Gast said the initial assessment was that the boy was in fair condition. It wasn
2 days ago a 3 year old baby wandered out of his yard and into the national forrest about 25 miles southwest of me. After a all night search for him involving hundreds of volunteers,,,,,there was not a sign of him found, The child was wearing only a diaper, a pajama top and a pair of tennis shoes. It has rained constantly for the last few days here with overnight temps dropping into the 40s. The area the boy was lost in is among the most rugged wilderness to be found in Missouri -Thousands of acres of woods ,brush, mountains,boulders, sink holes. caves along with many rain swolen creeks and small lakes. It is also the home of coyotes, black bear, rattlesnakes and even a few cougars.....not a good place for a small child to be lost in for a couple of days and nights.
Yesterday one of the childs shoes was found on the banks of a lake about 3/4 of a mile from his house....and the worst was feared. Water rescue teams began dragging the lake.
Another cold rainy night passed with no sign of the missing child.
This morning the sheriff put out a call for volunteers to help with another ground search and I along with hundreds of others answered the call. By this time the boy had been lost in the woods for more than 48 hours and hopes were dimming for finding him alive....or for finding him at all. Grown men have been lost and never found in these same woods.
After a cold wet day of slipping and sliding and fighting the thick brush...as we were broken into teams and searching grids....at about 4:00 pm this afternoon a team member with a cell phone recieved a texted message that brought many grown men.....including myself to tears of joy......2 words on the message.....FOUND ALIVE!
A fellow volunteer who was only able to search today because he could not work because of the rain....heard a small cry from the middle of a brush pile...and found the boy in the middle of it.....3 miles from home, naked,scratched up, and hungry....but overall in good shape! I have seldom seen so many people brought together for a common purpose and become so over whelmed with such joy when the boy was found! He is being kept overnight in a local hospital for observation -but is in good condition. This should be a special mothers day for his mother. Below is a article from a Kansas City newspaper.
ST. LOUIS | A 3-year-old southeast Missouri boy missing for more than two days was found alive Wednesday afternoon three miles from his rural home.
A volunteer found Joshua Childers in the rugged terrain of the Mark Twain National Forest, Madison County Sheriff David Lewis said. The boy had slipped out of his house more than 50 hours earlier, wearing a T-shirt, sneakers and a pull-up diaper. Joshua was taken to the Iron County Hospital in Pilot Knob at 4:42 p.m. for evaluation in the emergency room. Hospital CEO Ed Gast said the initial assessment was that the boy was in fair condition. It wasn
