Millions of Calls: The Impact of 1-800-THE-LOST
Forty years ago this week, the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children (NCMEC) launched a vital resource for families in crisis: a hotline dedicated to helping those dealing with missing and exploited children.
On Oct. 19, 1984, our toll-free number, 1-800-843-5678 – more commonly known as 1-800-THE-LOST – officially began taking calls. On its first day of operation alone, the hotline received hundreds of calls from families in need of support.
“This does work,” said Jay Howell, NCMEC’s first executive director, to United Press International, back in 1984. “We do believe and are confident that the existence of this number will result in children being returned to their homes.”
Now, four decades later, 1-800-THE-LOST has done exactly that and more. The number remains a crucial lifeline, helping countless families and children find the support they need during their darkest moments.
Carla Branch and her seeing-eye dog, Winston, with other hotline staffers at NCMEC's original location. (Credit: NCMEC)
In honor of the hotline’s 40th anniversary, here are a few facts about 1-800-THE-LOST:
- Over the last 40 years, our hotline has received more than 5 million calls.
- When the hotline launched, it operated on only ONE IBM-XT computer.
- During Presidentially declared disasters, NCMEC helps locate displaced children and reunite them with their families. When activated by FEMA, NCMEC’s call center runs the National Emergency Child Locator Center (NECLC). This special hotline was mandated by Congress after NCMEC’s efforts to find the 5,192 missing children displaced because of Hurricane Katrina.
- In 2019, our regional office in West Palm Beach, Florida, became the primary home to our national toll-free hotline.
The Walsh Family and former NCMEC CEO John Clark at the opening of the Florida Hotline in 2019. (Credit: NCMEC)
For more information on NCMEC’s hotline and other resources for missing and exploited children, please visit our website here: https://www.ncmec.org.