Dedicated to Madeline McCann and Family
 

She has been missing for 8 days now and today is her birthday.

Nice idea for a thread corporal. It's a very sad situation indeed. :sad:

I cannot imagine what they are going through. My thoughts are with them.

I hope she returns to her family as soon as possible, they need her and she needs them.

i just cannot imagine what the parents are going through, what sick animal steals a child! .. i almost feel sick thinking about it.

I can't imagine how the parents are feeling, but what about Madeline? How must she feel right now?

Mark you are so right, how scared and lost must that little girl feel having been taken away from all those people that she loves.

I feel so sorry for poor maddy and wish that she will be found safe and sound
but i cant help feeling a little cynical about the family, after all they did leave a 3 year old child on her own, im not blaming them but it is a little careless dont you think?

Yeah, she must be terrified. And no one knows what's happening to her, which is even more upsetting. I was speaking to someone at school about it, and they said that Portugal is third on this child slavery list. I know it's extreme to think, but realistically this could be happening.

You're right, it is a bit careless, but they have said the resturant wasn't far from their room. And in their defence, you don't really go on holiday thinking that there's a chance your children will get kidnapped, so it's understandable.

Plus, the 'kidnapper' was said to have been following them around for days, and even tampered with their windows. They weren't to know.

Things are getting desperate right now for Madeline McCann & now there is a fantastic reward for information about her whereabouts.

We all pray for her safe return.

An article in the Observer:-



Link & Article below:-

http://observer.guardian.co.uk/uk_ne...ticle_continue



Prayers for lost girl as reward hits £2.6m


Jamie Doward, Amelia Hill and Ned Temko in Praia da Luz
Sunday May 13, 2007
The Guardian


A multi-million pound reward for information leading to the safe return of Madeleine McCann, the British girl who went missing in Portugal 10 days ago, was offered yesterday by a group of leading business figures as her parents spoke of the devastation wreaked by her abduction.
The entrepreneur Sir Richard Branson, the impresario Bill Kenwright and retail tycoon Sir Philip Green were revealed as backers of a £1.5m reward announced by the News of the World newspaper. It means the total reward now on offer stands at a record £2.6m after a businessman and a family friend pledged a total of £1.1m last week.


Article continues

As friends, family and supporters in Britain and Portugal yesterday sported yellow ribbons to show solidarity with the McCanns, Madeleine's father, Gerry, told villagers at a special mass that he and his wife, Kate, should have been celebrating the fourth birthday of their daughter. 'Instead we have had to remember what a normal, beautiful, vivacious, funny, courageous and loving little girl we are missing today,' he said and described the effect of Madeline's abduction on the family as being 'like a tidal wave.'
He said the devastation had been felt almost as powerfully by friends, family and those they had met following Madeleine's abduction. 'The devastation affects everyone we meet here in the resort and has affected this community,' said McCann. from Rothley, Leicestershire. 'The tidal wave did not stop here - it has travelled many miles across Europe, across the sea to Glasgow, Liverpool, Leicester, Ireland, America, Canada, New Zealand and continental Europe, where we have many friends and family.'

He said that he and his wife had been touched by how those around them were remaining strong. 'They have taken our strength and they are taking action. These actions are to make Madeleine's disappearance more public in the hope that we will get her back sooner as a result. This also has given us great strength that we are doing everything in our power to help get Madeleine back.' He ended with the worlds 'thank you', prompting spontaneous applause from the congregation.

Gerry McCann smiled, and even laughed, for the first time in several days, as villagers lined up holding flowers and presents for Madeleine. His wife, who in recent days has appeared increasingly drawn, also smiled as scores of villagers lined up to kiss her on each cheek. Every member of the congregation wore a length of yellow string tied around their wrists by children as they entered.

The gesture echoed events earlier in the day both in Britain and Portugal where people tied yellow ribbons around railings or wore them on their lapels expressing their hope that Madeleine will return. Chancellor Gordon Brown was among those photographed wearing a yellow ribbon.

In Britain, there were vigils and gatherings for family, friends and members of the public. At a football match between Celtic and Aberdeen, thousands held up pictures of the little girl while players wore yellow bands.

Today thousands of Portuguese people will mark the 90th anniversary of the 'miracle of Fatima' - when three young children in a small town in the largely Catholic country reported seeing a vision of the Virgin Mary. As pilgrims made their way towards Fatima, another show of support for Madeleine and her parents came from the Portuguese national football coach, Luiz Felipe Scolari. 'We must believe in Our Lady of Fatima,' he was quoted as saying in a Portuguese newspaper. 'As we commemorate the apparition, let us hope for yet another miracle.'

The McCanns had planned a birthday party at their home yesterday with a cake themed on Doctor Who, Madeleine's favourite television programme. Instead the couple remained in Portugal. With the party on hold, they sent a poignant message to their daughter that read simply: 'We'll see you soon.'

Experts yesterday said the huge sums now being off ered as a reward for information could yield a positive outcome. 'Rewards do work,' said David Hill, a former kidnap expert with the National Crime Squad who now runs a personal security firm, Red24. But he warned it may pose new problems. 'A reward of this magnitude will bring in information from people who know nothing about the abduction but think they will get money,' Hill said. 'It could stimulate similar types of crime. Somebody could abduct a child, get somebody to give the information, and then split the reward.'

Donald Findlater, deputy director of the Lucy Faithfull foundation, which promotes child protection, said the reward would provide 'tremendous support for the family'.





nodisharmony :angel:

This story makes me feel ill and is one of the reasons why I will never have children.
My prayers are with the family.

It is always worrying for any mother or father to have to experience this and many do feel that having a child could result in some sort of tragedy occuring at that vulnerable age.

There are some nasty sick individuals out there who are fascinated with children of that age and want to do more than just look.

But on this occasion, there is some serious money being offered to help find Madeline and I am sure that many would agree that "good news" is what we want to hear:love:





nodisharmony :angel:

Kristen I understand where you come from with that statement.

Being a parent is the most scary job in the world. You dont get a handbook telling you the right and wrong way to do things you have to just muddle through!! I have always told my girls that for every minute they are late in I worry about them, lucky for me they have both taken that on board and been good at being in on time.

I feel sorry for her family, and if she's been snatched by a paedophile, surely the best thing for the poor girl is in fact to be dead. Can I make it clear that I do not wish any harm upon Madeleine McCann, nor do I hope she's been kidnapped by paedophiles, but I really can't imagine how horrific it's been for Madeleine, and how she'd grow up with that in her past.

I can't even begin to imagine what her parents are going through at this moment in time. I just hope they catch whoever did this and make them suffer the way Madeline and her family have suffered. I can only hope that she is safe and well and that she will find the strength and courage to carry on as normal life as possible if she is found. However hard that will be for her.

My thoughts and prayers are with Madeleine's family. I really hope Madeleine turns up safe and well. She has been missing now for 13 days.

If she is ever found, she is still quite young. So there could be a chance she wont remember a great deal of it, and can just move on with life.

Yeah Mark your right. Madeleine is only very young so chances are if she is found alive she wont remember much when she is older. But if this happened to a grown up then the chances would be slim to forgot about something like this.

True, but then there's an equal chance the memories will never fade and will ruin her entire life. She could maybe get over it with counselling, but it would destory many aspects of her life.

Yeah, that's also true.
But if something bad has happened to her, she could be haunted by it sometimes in life.

That depends on what's happened to her. They were saying before it could just be a childless mother, so hopefully they're right, and she isn't being harmed. So it won't be too traumatising for her.

Her young age will play a big part in what she does or doesn't remember, but ultimately it will be all about how negative her experience is. She could be well cared for and very upset not to be with M & D. She should get over that with some ease, but that's best case scenario.... One we all very much hope for.
:thumbs:

I only just heared about this yesterday. (I never take any notice towards the news/newspapers).

It's horribe. I hope Madeline is safe, she must be petrified right now. And as for the parents they must be so worried. I hope the police find her soon.

Let's hope so! But I'd heard that experts had said if it was a childless family, they would have taken one of the twins because the twins would probably not have a memory of their parents as much as Madeleine has.