What We Do
We find missing children.
The Process
How do we do it?
Every accepted case gets a licensed private investigator and a Parent Support Advocate immediately. The investigator works the leads. The advocate stays with the family. Actionable information goes directly to law enforcement for recovery.
An investigator from day one
Our investigators are former law enforcement who know the counties they work in, supported by cyber intelligence specialists who analyze digital footprints and track emerging leads in real time.
We’re on the street and online
Investigators interview family, friends, and acquaintances. They analyze call logs, social media activity, and open-source intelligence; canvass neighborhoods; and conduct fieldwork across county and state lines.
The first 48 hours after a child goes missing are critical, and we move accordingly.
Law enforcement makes the recovery
We work alongside police, never in their place. Finding Kids adds dedicated investigative capacity between the initial report and the recovery. Our investigators analyze digital activity, work sources, canvass, and put eyes on locations. They do not contact the missing child or attempt a recovery. When they locate a child or develop actionable information, it goes immediately to the lead agency.
Officers conduct the recovery, and prosecutors decide whether arrests or charges follow. This division protects the child, keeps evidence admissible, and preserves the case against whoever put that child in danger. It’s also why more than 80 agencies have worked with us: we make their cases stronger, not messier. When your child comes home, it will be a police officer who brings them, with our investigators’ work behind every step that got them there.
What to expect
From report to reunion
From the moment your child is missing, here is what happens, step by step.
From the parent/community
- Report your child missing to law enforcement. There is no waiting period.
- Complete the Finding Kids intake form.
- Contact NCMEC at 1-800-THE-LOST.
From finding kids
- We review the case and determine whether we can accept it.
- We assign an investigator and a Parent Support Advocate.
- You choose whether to take part in Family Support.
- Investigators develop leads and coordinate with law enforcement.
- Law enforcement conducts the recovery.
- Family Support continues through stabilization and healing.
Accepted
Recovery Rate
After 1 Year
Cost
Agencies
What Do We Do?
We find jennys
and other kids like her.
Missing from school on a Thursday. By Saturday morning, an investigator was watching a Sacramento bus station, relaying real-time updates to police. Officers made contact and brought her home without incident, two days after she disappeared.
Grandmother of 16 year old
“With their compassionate help, we began our journey to healing...”
We do not charge families or law enforcement for our services. To make our work possible, we rely on private funders who decide that a missing child is their problem too.