Out of Home industry lends signs to Missing Persons for the 10th year

The Outdoor Media Association (OMA) and its members have again partnered with the Australian Federal Police (AFP) for National Missing Persons Week (NMPW), today launching a national Out of Home (OOH) campaign highlighting the profiles of missing persons cases.

This year, OMA members have generously donated an estimated 5,000 OOH signs Australiawide, valued at approximately $1.7m – the largest donation in the history of the partnership. Participating OMA members include: Adshel, APN Outdoor, Bishopp Outdoor Advertising, JCDecaux, oOh!media, QMS Media, Tonic Health Media, and TorchMedia.

Originally developed following the disappearance of Queensland (QLD) resident, Tony Jones, in 1988, the 2018 campaign marks the 30th anniversary of the NMPW initiative, the 10th year of the OOH industry’s support in New South Wales (NSW), and the 4th year in partnership with the AFP.

“Through the generous support of the OMA and its members, the National Missing Persons Coordination Centre is able to reach an overwhelmingly large audience and raise awareness of missing persons in Australia. By using its nation-wide network of Outdoor media platforms, the faces of missing people are seen across the country. This level of profiling and awareness would not be possible without the ongoing support of the OMA,” said Acting Coordinator, Missing Persons and Exploited Children, Jayne Crossling.

This year the Outdoor campaign will focus on the following missing people:

• Neville Archer – last seen in Mandurah, WA, 9 August 1991
• Kasper Ellis – last seen in Trinder Park, QLD, 24 December 2015
• John Forster – last seen in Diamond Creek, VIC, 7 October 2017
• Youliang Lin – last seen in Castle Hill, NSW, 15 September 2017
• Paddy Moriarty – last seen in Larrimah, NT, 16 December 2017
• Jean Policarpio – last seen in Bonner, ACT, 26 September 2017
• Nicholas Pavlidis – last seen in Currambine, WA, 14 October 2015
• Scott Redman – last seen in Kimba, SA, 21 April 2018
• Naz Woldemichael – last seen in Hobart, TAS, 9 October 2016

“Seeing their face is confronting but it is so important that missing people are not forgotten – it’s so much more than just family, friends and work colleagues that feel their loss. The support of OMA members means so much in raising the visibility of the 38,000 people who go missing every year – every person has someone who cares about them,” said Christine Forster, wife of Victorian missing person John Forster.

“The OMA deeply values its sponsorship of NMPW, and is proud to help mark 30 years of the campaign, and 10 years of OOH industry support. OOH is the #1 always on place where people go to stay connected, which means it’s perfectly positioned to broadcast critical information on missing loved ones. We encourage the public to look carefully at the campaign and come forward with information,” said Tess Phillips, OMA General Manager.

National Missing Persons Week runs from Sunday 5 August to Saturday 11 August, 2018. For more information visit: Missing Persons