Silently celebrating Pink Ladies’ success

THE Pink Ladies may have celebrated its 10th anniversary yesterday, but despite the milestone, the organisation is keeping celebrations to a minimum.

The NGO is run by volunteers and helps find missing children to reunite them with their families. They lend their skills to assist in the recovery and return of missing, exploited and runaway teenagers and spouses.

They also raise awareness, assist with the reporting of missing people and referrals when required.

“As usual we are celebrating silently in the background and electronically on social media, thanking our supporters and volunteers. As they say, the show must go on and with the volume of cases we deal with, there is little time to rest on our laurels,” said co-founder Jacqui Thomas.

The number of cases they had assisted with over the years is well into the thousands, she said. In 2015 alone, The Pink Ladies assisted with 941 cases across the country, with 91% of the people missing found alive, and 9% found dead.

“The knowledge that in the event of losing a loved one there will always be tens of thousands of people ready to assist and knowing that every little bit of assistance goes a long way, reuniting families is what keeps us coming back to help,” Thomas said.

“No case is ever seen as a time-waster and each case is treated on its merits. No matter the circumstances, there is usually a reason for the disappearance. Everyone is someone’s child.”

However, Thomas said they don’t take hoaxes lightly and should the circumstances warrant it then SAPS would be called in and continue with matters.

Dealing with missing cases is often a thankless job, but it is often the small rewards that help inspire those at The Pink Ladies, she said.

“It’s always rewarding at the closure of every case. The simple knowledge that we are able to provide closure is a reward in itself,” Thomas said. The Pink Ladies can be reached on 072 214 7439.