If you want to show support for the search for Nevaeh Buchanan, a 5-year-old girl in Monroe, Mich., who has been missing since May 24, the awareness and support color that has been adopted by family members and volunteers is yellow.

Yellow ribbons, yellow shirts, yellow balloons, etc.

My Nevaeh yellow ribbon was a gift to me from one of Nevaeh’s relatives on Friday night. I later learned that volunteer headquarters at her apartment clubhouse was running out of yellow ribbon – they had pretty much cleared out the supplies at the local stores. So I dug through my craft supplies and took a bag of yellow ribbons over to the clubhouse.

If you want a yellow ribbon, it’s basically a piece of ribbon folded over in the tradition we’ve seen many times in the past 20 years for various causes. Just pin it on your shirt or jacket or whatever. I wore my ribbon on my shirt this weekend, but I’ve now decided to put it on my computer monitor at The Monroe Evening News newsroom. It’s pretty visible to the public there.

I’ve also seen some people tying yellow ribbons into their hair.

There’s no mandate that you have to get yellow ribbons from the volunteer committee. Just dig through your own craft supply scraps and make your own. You might even have a yellow ribbon pin that you received during other events and campaigns. You can re-use it for this occasion.

Now about those shirts … there is a very pretty design someone has come up with that involves roses and Nevaeh’s name on a yellow shirt. But most people seem to be going through their closets and dressers to find anything yellow that they already own. I’ve even seen people wearing University of Michigan and University of Toledo sport shirts that, well, happen to have yellow in the design.

And here’s a tip: check out what the thrift shops and second-hand shops have in stock. The Second Chance Boutique in downtown Monroe now is featuring yellow clothes in its display window: