42 missing NJ kids who need your help: Spread the word

Over the last year, New Jersey 101.5 has reported on dozens of alerts for missing New Jersey children.

Some were never found. Some met tragic ends — such as 15-year-old Nicole Angstadt, found dead in a crawlspace of a nearby home.

But in countless other cases, New Jersey families found far happier endings. That was the case when a missing boy from Point Pleasant with autism turned up in New York City, as his family pleaded through social media for help locating him. He was safe and unharmed.

In many of those cases, authorities say, the diligence of a concerned public was the difference — and efforts to share information through social media have brought countless children home.

Such efforts can do so again. New Jersey 101.5 is asking you to keep a vigilant eye out for the children in the gallery above — and to spread the word.

Forty-two children from New Jersey are listed in the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children as having gone missing since Jan. 1, 2000 — and each is seen above. The center's database has dozens more New Jersey entries, including those reported before the turn of the century.

In some cases, the children are believed to be with parents who abducted them despite not having parental rights. In cases where the parents are believed to be abusive or reckless, those children could be in continued danger. In some cases, they're believed to have left the country. In others, there's no telling where the children went, or with whom.

If you spot any of these children, call 911 or the center at 1-800-843-5678 (1-800-THE-LOST).

Note: The gallery above is an update of one first run in December 2015, featuring several new missing children's cases.