Press & News

Farmers Insurance to Sponsor m.i.l.k. Program to Aid in the Recovery of Missing Children

LOS ANGELES, CA (May 28, 2003) - Farmers Insurance Group is proud to announce it has joined forces with m.i.l.k. (Managing Information on Lost Kids), a national child identification program aimed at aiding in the recovery of missing children. The m.i.l.k. Digital ID was developed by Imagery Concepts, LLC at the request of the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children (NCMEC) to empower parents in the event of a child emergency situation.

Law enforcement officials nationwide are quick to point out that the single most effective tool in recovering a missing child is a current photo. In the event of an emergency, the m.i.l.k. Digital ID can immediately be forwarded to local authorities and NCMEC. The m.i.l.k. Digital ID has been referred to as the first step in the newly signed national Amber Alert plan.

To kick off the program, Farmers Insurance will host a press conferences at the Farmers Oklahoma City Help Point Center located at Shepard's Mall, 2401 N.W. 23rd Street in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma on May 30, 2003 at 10:00 a.m. and at the Farmers Insurance Claim Center located at 3510 South 79th East Avenue in Tulsa, Oklahoma on Friday May 30, 2003 at 3:30 p.m.

Scheduled speakers for Oklahoma City include Kimberly Stem, Scheduler to the First Lady of the State of Oklahoma, Rebecca Demauro, Executive Director of The Andi Foundation and a member of Team Hope, Tom Quinn, President of Imagery Concepts, LLC and Jim Westerman, State Executive Director of Oklahoma for Farmers Insurance Group. Kimberly Stem will deliver a personal message from the First Lady relaying her commitment to the m.i.l.k. program. Tom Quinn will address the benefits of utilizing the latest technology to protect and educate families. Rebecca Demauro, a missing children's advocate whose own child was abducted, will share her story and mission to educate the public on child safety issues.

Scheduled speakers for Tulsa include Mayor Bill LaFortune, Rebecca Demauro, Tom Quinn and Jim Westerman.

"This consortium not only assists NCMEC in its efforts to safeguard children, but also provides document scanning and storage capabilities, which means that users would be able to keep a current photo of their child on file at all times," Jim Westerman of Farmers Insurance said.

More information about m.i.l.k.:

According to NCMEC, over 2,000 children are reported missing every day. Unfortunately, in a missing child situation, 40% of parents can't produce a current photo and 34% can't state their child's height, weight and eye color. NCMEC states, a recent photo, quickly circulated, greatly improves the recovery rate of the missing child. The m.i.l.k. Digital ID meets the standards established by NCMEC for providing critical visual and narrative information and provides the means for immediately sending this vital information to the proper authorities. The primary goal of this program is to establish the world's largest electronic dragnet for child recovery.

The m.i.l.k. Digital ID is part of the Home Organizer® kids owner's manual software. In addition to the m.i.l.k. Digital ID, the software contains educational and safety-related information from NCMEC, the Partnership for a Drug-Free America and Reading is Fundamental. Electronic brochures embedded in the software cover issues such as choosing a babysitter, what to do should a child run away or be abducted, how a child can be safe on the Internet and many other topics.

To help empower parents and care-givers in the event of a missing child situation, Farmers Agents will be providing free CDs containing the Home Organizer® kids owner's manual and m.i.l.k. Digital ID to all interested parities.

About the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children: Headquartered in Alexandria, VA, the NCMEC was created as a public/private partnership to help in the search for missing children. It represents the best of government and private sector joint efforts and addresses one of our most complex social issues…the victimization of our children. Today, the NCMEC reports a recovery rate of 93%, due in large part to the widespread support of many of the computer industry's biggest names. To learn more about the NCMEC and its programs, visit www. missingkids.com. (See http://www.missingkids.com/)

About Imagery Concepts, LLC: Imagery Concepts, LLC is a marketing solutions and software development company. After the success of their FILEoPIC® Document Management Systems designed for business networks, they decided to enter the consumer software market with their Home Organizer® virtual filing cabinet. Once a relationship was established with NCMEC, they focused their efforts on developing and distributing the m.i.l.k. Digital ID. (See http://www.imageryconcepts.biz/)