CANADA Canada - Helen Robertson, 79, Burlington, Ont, 5 July 2016

[dotr]

Very interesting in depth and lengthy article with pics. about " wandering".
Noting that A. patients tend to go in the direction of whichever is their dominant hand.


http://projects.thestar.com/news/insight/2014/11/28/the_conundrum_of_dementiadriven_wandering.html
rbbm.
Six in 10 people with Alzheimer’s and other forms of dementia become lost at least once. Why do they wander, and how do we stop them?

By Amy Dempsey - Feature Writer
& Richard Lautens - Photographer

James Berry had a destination in mind when he left his house that cold April morning, but no one knows what it was or if he ever got there. Not even him.

Cars whizzed past him on Victoria Park Ave. as he shuffled down the sidewalk in a pair of old running shoes. He wore a thick leather coat and a wool toque pulled over his silver curls. Soft brown eyes and a smooth complexion made him appear a decade younger than his 78 years, but he walked with the stiff gait of a man with old bones.

Berry passed the Tim Hortons where he sometimes sat alone with a doughnut when he had nothing else to do. He passed the strip mall pharmacy where he got the pills his family hoped would slow the disease attacking his brain. He passed row after row of brick townhouses and apartment buildings which lined the four-lane street in the Scarborough neighbourhood where he lived with his daughter and two adult grandsons.

It was an unremarkable walk until, without warning, the neighbourhood faded and morphed. Berry took a step, a gear shifted in his brain, and though he was right where he’d been a moment before he no longer recognized his surroundings.

“Like somebody dropped me in the middle of the city somewhere,” Berry would say later, though he’d never remember the specifics of the disappearance, only the panic he felt trying to summon a memory that would lead him back.

They are wanderers. They have been found on highways, in the woods, in parks, in malls, on farms, in corn fields, in gullies, near train tracks, in warehouses and in swamps. They have been found sitting silently in hospital waiting rooms. They have been found trying to enter homes they once lived in. They have been found dishevelled, dehydrated, starving, terrified, wearing slippers in the snow and parkas in the summer, with hypothermia and heat stroke, cuts and broken bones. Some have been found dead — here in Toronto on Highway 400, in a wooded area behind a subdivision in Vaughan and on a residential sidewalk in the middle of winter.

Once lost, people with dementia often begin to wander toward a past they think is present, returning in mind to a period in their lives more familiar than the foggy now. They are lost literally and lost in history, seeking out people and places that may no longer exist. Professional searchers often have to figure out where they are in time before they can find them in space

 

[Tealgrove]

Oh My Goodness! I know Helen. I know her from the Curves gym. As soon as I read that she went to Curves I went back and looked at her picture and bam!

Helen is VERY fit. She puts some of us younger women to shame. She can really go.

Helen, where are you???

 

[dotr]

Bumping for Helen Robertson, where on earth can she be?!

 

[Limecat]

Bumping for Helen Robertson, where on earth can she be?!

I don't know why I haven't followed this thread before - I just came across it. It is just heart-rending. I can't imagine the anguish her loved ones must endure knowing Helen is out there "somewhere" and after all this time.

My Uncle suffered from Alzheimer's and luckily he only got away from his facility one time, and hadn't gotten far. He was insisting he was going to his bank which was not even in the city where he was.

I will be praying for Helen that she is found safe and for her loved ones they they remain strong.

MOO


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[dotr]

Bumping for Helen and wondering if LE may locate her as they search for a young jogger, also missing in Burlington.
http://www.websleuths.com/forums/sh...ntario-31-August-2016&p=12779293#post12779293
Christopher Komac.

 

[slowpoke]

Bumping for Helen and wondering if LE may locate her as they search for a young jogger, also missing in Burlington.
http://www.websleuths.com/forums/sh...ntario-31-August-2016&p=12779293#post12779293
Christopher Komac.

I see that that young jogger, Christopher Komac, was located alive and uninjured in a residential area. Wonder what happened to him, but glad for the outcome.

I was just thinking of Helen Robertson yesterday, when having a discussion with my elderly dad. I'm fortunate that he is mentally sharp despite his advanced age. He told me a story of an acquaintance who used to take walks for exercise (like Helen). This fellow had Alzheimer's, and from what they were later able to surmise, that day as he was walking he came upon a bus stop where several folks were boarding the public bus that had stopped to pick up the passengers. He got in line behind them and boarded too! He got off the bus somewhere far away, then was lucky that eventually a good samaritan realized his confused state, got the ball rolling and he was finally reunited with his frantic family.

I do think that could be a real possibility for why they haven't been able to find her within a certain radius of her home. Though I'm sure they must have already checked with the bus drivers and alerted surrounding cities...This is so sad. Poor Helen, poor family.

 

[dotr]

http://www.insidehalton.com/news-story/6870832-helen-robertson-of-burlington-missing-since-july-5/
Sep 21, 2016

[h=1]Helen Robertson of Burlington missing since July 5[/h]

In conjunction with World Alzheimer's Day Sept. 14, Halton Regional Police are reminding residents that Helen Robertson remains missing.

The 79-year-old woman, who suffers from Alzheimer's disease, was last seen on Tuesday, July 5 at her home on Millcroft Park Drive in northeast Burlington. She had wandered off before, including in February when she left a fitness club and was found 25 km away in Mississauga.

 

[Dushi]

http://www.insidehalton.com/news-story/6870832-helen-robertson-of-burlington-missing-since-july-5/
Sep 21, 2016

[h=1]Helen Robertson of Burlington missing since July 5[/h]

Poor lady, she has been away from home for so long.
Family must be frantic

 

[dotr]

Oct 4 2016
http://www.chch.com/nearly-three-months-since-79-year-helen-robertson-vanished/

Det. Joe Barr, the lead investigator with Halton Regional Police handling the case, wants to remind the public that with the seasons changing there may be differences in things like density of bushes and shrubs, trees shedding leaves, shifting earth etc. Barr says areas previously searched, may now appear different.

Halton Police are asking anyone who may have information this case to call Regional Investigative Services at 905-825-4747 ext. 8760 or Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-TIPS (8477).

 

[jash]

An 86 year old man with Alzheimer's was recently found safe in the Niagara region after walking 30 kms from his home in Ancaster. I really wished for a similar ending for Helen.

http://www.thespec.com/news-story/6912343-missing-man-with-alzheimer-s-walked-30-km-to-niagara/

The case is similar to one Halton Police are still investigating and which hasn't yielded a happy ending so far.

It's been more than three months since Burlington's Helen Robertson went missing.
...

Robertson has still not been found. Police say they don't know what happened to her. She had wandered off before, including in February when she left a fitness club and was found 25 kilometres away in Mississauga.

Police are still hoping for tips from the public.

 

[dotr]

http://www.insidehalton.com/news-st...r-to-help-track-wandering-or-missing-persons/
Nov 30, 2016

Halton police set to launch Project Lifesaver to help track wandering or missing persons

To better respond to "the most vulnerable population in an area that we regularly engage in from a police service perspective," Milinovich said HRPS is launching a new rapid response and rescue program to help locate wandering or missing people by way of a tracking device.

Project Lifesaver Halton, to be implemented in 2017, will see those enrolled in the program, wear a small personal transmitter device, with a tracking signal, around their wrist or ankle.
If the participant goes missing, their caregiver notifies Project Lifesaver, which will send out a trained emergency team to respond, according to a related Halton Region report.
A receiver antenna will be used to communicate with the wandering person's transmitter to help pinpoint their location and movement.

"This issue hits very close to home — still does in Burlington when we had an elderly woman go missing, Helen Robertson, who still hasn't been located. It's still a tragedy for our community." Robertson went missing in early July from her home in Burlington. An extensive ground and aerial search was conducted, but Robertson remains missing.

rbbm

 

[dotr]

April 24 2017
http://www.cp24.com/news/police-loc...on-woman-79-who-disappeared-in-july-1.3382916

[h=1]Police locate wallet of Burlington woman, 79, who disappeared in July[/h]

On Monday, police found an empty, brown leather Fossil wallet in a football field at Norton Park near Dundas Street and Tim Dobbie Drive in Burlington, a short distance from where Robertson was last seen. (Halton Regional Police Service)




The wallet was discovered by a parks worker and may have been discarded there over the weekend, Halton police say.
Investigators believe someone moved the wallet there.
“This is the first meaningful development that we’ve had in our investigation since her disappearance,” Det. Joe Barr told CP24.
Barr is asking the person who had possession of the wallet to come forward, in hopes it can lead to new information related to the senior’s whereabouts.

 

[dotr]

http://toronto.ctvnews.ca/wallet-of-missing-burlington-woman-79-found-by-police-1.3382920

“All we’re looking for is more information,” Barr said.

Robertson suffers from Alzheimer’s disease.

She is believed to have wandered off when she went missing last summer.

Halton police’s initial search was intensive, calling in canine and marine units, but these efforts were unsuccessful.

This is not the first time she wandered off. In February, she left a fitness club and was located 25-kilometres away in Mississauga.

She is described as 5’2”, weighing 110lbs, with a slim build and has white collar length hair.

She was last seen wearing glasses, a red long sleeved collared shirt and a pair of mismatching running shoes, one was a white-and-blue Nike high top, while the other is a white-and-silver Reebok.

Anyone with information is asked to call Halton Police Services Det. Joe Barr at 905-825-4747, ext. 2385 or Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-8477

 

[matou]

OK it IS weird that her wallet was found near where she was last seen. The wallet is empty and investigators believe that it was placed there RECENTLY. Yes, it is really weird. Where are you Helen?

 

[Tealgrove]

This is in my neck of the woods.

I think it's quite bizarre that the wallet has just turned up and LE believe it was placed there recently. It was a beautiful weekend in these parts this past weekend. After a yucky spring so far everybody was out and about soaking up the warmth and sunshine. The parks were extremely busy.

Just to the north of this park is a LOT of rural green space. This is part of the Niagara Escarpment. A lot of undeveloped areas, farmland, fields, woods, farms etc. If Helen got to walking she could have gone north, got lost in the woods, slipped into a creek etc. etc.

It was terribly hot when Helen went missing. I feared for her wellbeing back then and I fear even more now.

It's really important to find out where that wallet was originally found. I hope someone steps forward.

 

[Tealgrove]

I drove past the area that where Helen's wallet was found on my way to work this morning.

The immediate area surrounding the location of the found wallet is under development. Lot's of digging, houses being built. A small creek runs north to south just west of the park. East of the area are two large retention ponds and a retail outdoor centre with a Walmart. This is a VERY busy area. Lots of houses, a school, rec centre, on both sides of Dundas. Burlington and Hamilton had heavy heavy rainfall last Thursday and LE are now wondering if the wallet was unearthed by the rains. This was reported on CHCH this morning. Also according to CHCH, LE will be on scene this morning to do a search and see if they can find anything else.

 

[dotr]

April 25 2017
http://www.citynews.ca/2017/04/25/police-hope-wallet-found-field-leads-missing-burlington-woman/

Police believe the wallet was left there between last Friday and Monday after being found at some other location.

Police are appealing for the person who found it to tell them where it was found so they can conduct a further ground search for the elderly woman

rbbm.

 

[Tealgrove]

I drove past the park on my way home tonight and can report that a Command Centre has been set up and 4 marked LE vehicles were parked along side. They've set up in the parking lot beside the leash free dog area.

I'm glad to see that they haven't forgot Helen and are working hard to find her.

 

[dotr]

I drove past the park on my way home tonight and can report that a Command Centre has been set up and 4 marked LE vehicles were parked along side. They've set up in the parking lot beside the leash free dog area.

I'm glad to see that they haven't forgot Helen and are working hard to find her.

Thanks so much for the local update, Tealgrove!

 

[ms_x_to_the_m]

So this has been confirmed that its her wallet? It doesn't look dirty or weathered. I wonder if it was inside something.
I do wonder if maybe someone has her because otherwise they would be looking for remains. So sad. I have often wondered what happened to her.