81 year-old Roberta takes a very short daily walk down the driveway of her home in Charles County, Maryland. Usually after she reaches the end of the driveway she turns around and heads home.
On Friday, Roberta kept going. Because she had dementia her daughter immediately worried about her mother’s safety and called 911.
A group of officers were able to track Roberta down. Knowing that she has dementia they decided to pretend like they were on a walk too, and asked if they could escort her home.
The Charles County Sheriff’s Office shared the photo above and posted the following note on Facebook:
“We often talk about the rewards of police work. On Friday, we captured a moment.
Officers responded to a 911 call from a woman who reported her 81-year-old mother missing. It seems her mother left her house to take her daily walk up and down the driveway, but when she didn’t return, things got a bit scary because the woman’s mother has dementia. Officers P. DeBoe, C. Caywood, B. Morrison, Sgt. C. Black, and Cpl. C. Clevenger and his K9 partner responded to the scene and began a search of the heavily wooded area.
After 40 minutes, the woman was found. At first, she seemed confused at the sudden appearance of police officers on the tree-lined trail, and she asked if the officers were out taking a walk too. They quietly replied ‘Yes,’ after all, it was a beautiful day. And then she seemed relieved and told them she had lost her way. ‘No problem,’ said Officer Morrison who then gently took her hand and, along with the other officers walked her back to her house. Along the way, the officers made small talk with the woman, to make her feel at ease. When asked what the key to a long, healthy life was, the woman replied, ‘Eat good and stay active.’
Officers encounter different situations every day. Some good, some not so good. In this case, a frightening situation for the family ended happily. For that, they were thankful. For us, it’s the rewarding part of policing.”
