#TBT: Parents of Abducted Kids Don't Lose Hope

There are many cases of kidnapping in China and most often, the victims are kids. Having their child stolen away is a parent’s worst nightmare. In China, this bad dream happened 59,007 times in 2015 alone. Estimates vary on how many children go abducted each year. Some say the number is close to 70,000, of which only 5% or less of the kidnapped get to be reunited with their families.

BAO BEI HUI JIA (Baby Back Home), the most influential Chinese NGO for missing children, doesn’t give up and continues its mission to help more families come back together. A few years back, the NGO started a campaign together with agency TBWA\Shanghai, aiming to raise awareness about the missing children phenomenon. During this week’s #ThrowBrandThursday column, we invite you to see how strong the bond between a parent and their kid is via the “A Thread of Hope” campaign.

Most parents end up leaving their jobs to do whatever it takes to hug their baby again. But no matter how far they are from each other, the bond between them grows stronger and stronger, becoming indestructible. This thread of hope that the agency imagined highlights the unique relationship that exists between the two family members.

The campaign made these feelings of pure love visible through an exhibition, where the portraits of the heartbroken parents and the missing kids were exhibited. The embroidered illustrations were handcrafted, using the cross-stitch technique. The child-parent images were connected by threads, symbolizing the parents’ “long-suffering, yet undying love,” representing something they can cling to in the hope of reconnecting with their child.

The exhibition garnered over 974,000 shares. The award-winning campaign received public attention and was covered by more than 120 media reports. In the last years, the NGO helped more than 2,800 families reunite.