TECHNOLOGY LENDS A HAND TO THE THOUSANDS OF FAMILIES SEARCHING FOR MISSING LOVED ONES

    /24-7PressRelease/ - OMAHA, NE, March 19, 2007 - Project Jason, a non-profit organization, announced today that it has created a partnership with the Missing People Podcast (MPP) to develop audio programming for missing people and the families who are urgently searching for them. The podcasts will feature a variety of subjects, including vital information regarding the circumstances surrounding a person's disappearance and significant legislative efforts throughout the country that may impact the families.

Very few people would think of the number of missing persons in America as a crisis. The statistics, however, are sobering. In the United States alone, there are as many as 105,000 active missing person's cases. Every year, tens of thousands of people vanish under suspicious circumstances. The number of missing persons can be estimated in the hundreds of thousands if viewed over a 20-year period.1

"I think it is very important to utilize whatever resources are available to help these families," says Steve Bronnum, President of MPP, "We bring a true voice to the families of the missing and all those who care about them. Technology is helpful in so many ways and my greatest hope is to use it to bring some information to families desperate for news of their loved ones."

The MPP programs will include a "News and Alerts" section focused on recent developments related to missing people and alerts about recently missing people. The "Portraits of the Missing" section provides profiles of specific missing persons. The "Interviews" segment is a dialogue with family members of the missing and experts in the field and, the "Programs" section will include voice talents telling the stories of the missing.

"This is a critical development in helping families locate their missing loved ones," says Kelly Jolkowski, mother of Jason Jolkowski and founder of Project Jason, "As with any program that we support, our partnership with MPP is focused on the most important thing in all missing person cases - awareness."

The MPP audio content is available for download or streaming on the internet with future plans for subscription podcasting and CD production. For more information, visit the website at missingpeoplepodcast.com.

1 Ritter,N. Missing Persons and Unidentified Remains: The Nation's Silent Mass Disaster, NIJ Journal, NO.256, January 2007

About Project Jason
Project Jason was founded by the family of Jason Jolkowski after his disappearance on June 13, 2001. The nonprofit's mission is to create and increase public awareness of missing people through a variety of outreach and educational activities. Project Jason seeks to bring hope and assistance to families of the missing by providing resources and support. Project Jason is also responsible for presenting Jason's Law, which passed on May 25, 2005. Jason's Law allows for the creation of a Nebraska state missing person's clearinghouse to gather and disseminate information about all missing persons. For more information, please visit http://www.projectjason.org

"Our mission as a non profit organization is to create and increase public awareness of missing people through a variety of outreach and educational activities. Project Jason seeks to bring hope and assistance to families of the missing by providing resources and support."

# # #