For most, Grandshire Estates is normally a safe place for children. For Ellen Maleitzke, that all changed Monday.
"By the time I got her to calm down and tell me everything, I said to myself, 'this is real, this really happened.'"
She and her granddaughter, Emma, were getting ready to go to Walmart. Emma was outside waiting, when a car pulled up.
"They were trying to get her into the back seat of their car," Maleitzke said.
A younger woman, saying nothing, was in the passenger seat, and a man with a beard motioned Emma toward the car.
"He didn't talk more than just saying, 'Emma, Emma,' which really scared me that he knew her name," said Maleitzke "I realized yesterday that she had a license plate on her bike that said 'Emma' to show that it was her bike, but that came off right away."
Maleitzke says that Emma was taught by her school and the police how to handle stranger danger.
"It's all about awareness for the kids. The smarter they are, the quicker they can get away."
Even the most prepared can fall victim to child abduction. Just because you're prepared, that doesn't mean it won't happen.
"It slam-dunks you with reality that this can happen to your child, and it happens everywhere. Do what we can to protect our children as much as possible, not let them go."
