Long-serving head of Missing Children's Network stepping down

The Missing Children's Network has existed in Quebec for nearly 40 years, and for much of that time, the face of the network has been Pina Arcamone.

She, however, is retiring, and she announced her replacement on Monday after nearly 29 years at the helm.

"It's going to be very difficult to say goodbye to the families and not be in contact," she said. "Their hope of finding their child is also my hope and continues to be, and I hold these children so dear to my heart."

Lawyer Melanie Aubut will take over the position.

Arcamone spoke proudly of the prevention programs that were created like the Shine workshops that aim to prevent the sexual exploitation of young teens.

"Out of every tragedy, we created a program, we created an initiative, we made sure the message got through," she said. "We said we can't just sensitize the children on the Island of Montreal. We tried to dream bigger and do bigger things to better protect our children."

The organization also gives children information on how to stay safe on social media and potential online predators.

"We're noticing that children as young as 9-10 years old have Snapchat, TikTok," said Arcamone. "If we are going to allow children to have a cellphone and be on social media, we need to talk to them in an honest and non-threatening manner about the dangers."

After losing both her parents and the pressures of the pandemic, Arcamone has decided to retire, proud to have helped change policies better to protect children.