It’s Sunday night, I’m sitting here thinking and praying for the girl who recently went missing here in Poway, and also praying for her family.  I am the father of 3 children… and cannot imagine the pain and fear that they are all going through.

I have a mind that tends to look for solutions, or ways that technology can be of benefit.  I think I have one of those ideas right now.

My kids all have cell phones, they have cell phones mainly so that we can contact them if needed, and if they are in trouble they can get a hold of us.  I think these days most parents make sure their children have a cell phone for the same reason.

Some cell providers give you the ability to locate where your children’s cell phones are.  This is great if you are having issues locating them.  It also can help you ensure that your kid is at a friends house and not at the mall when they aren’t supposed to be.

There is a slight problem with this, if your kid, or loved one is taken and they leave their cell phone somewhere this doesn’t help when you are searching for them.  I propose a different way to help keep track, just in case…

Almost every cell phone these days has GPS, and if not GPS you can track down the cell phone to within an area based on the cell phone tower that is closest to the phone.  Why not have an ‘app’ that goes on the phone that will ‘check in’ every 15 minutes, or even every 30 minutes.  Be it sending a text, for those phone that don’t have GPS, or sending an I’m here notification to a central system for those phones that do.

That way, if someone disappears, you have a map of where they have been.  This would be a good thing, especially if they are taken, and their phone is with them… they don’t have to use it to report where they are… the phone would have to be on though.

Some people would argue that this would be a breach of privacy, that having someone know where you are virtually all the time is like having big brother in your pocket or purse.

If it allows someone to be found sooner, or alive, isn’t that worth it?  Plus, to be honest, your location can be determined nearly anytime right now if you have a cell phone and it’s on… sorry, that’s just the nature of the beast.

With my idea though, there could be a trail that could be followed… clues could be picked up and used to locate a missing person. It’s not 100%, but in some cases could be more effective than nothing at all.

My thoughts are with anyone who has lost a loved one, child or adult… it is a hard thing to live with.