OKLAHOMA CITY - At 97, Howard Brinley's still the life of the party.
Daughters Sue and Donna keep the World War II veteran moving.
Howard’s mind isn’t what it used to be.
He has dementia and, sometimes, wanders away.
“He was gone over 15 minutes,” Sue said. "A nun found him [on a busy street corner].”
Howard could wander away again, which is why he's wearing a thin bracelet.
It looks like a watch and has a radio transmitter that helps electronically track Howard and others with dementia and alzheimer's.
Lt. Kristin Polansky and Officer Robert Rouner agreed to show us how the human locator technology works.
We met them at the Martin Nature Park Center.
The Care Trak receiver includes a large, old school looking antenna.
“It is, but it’s proven technology that works,” Polansky said.
The technology was first used to track endangered animals.
We’re playing hide and go seek with a pair of senior advocates.
Eunice Khoury hosts a radio show for seniors on KTOK 1000.
Robin Gunn is publisher of the Oklahoma Senior Journal.
We gave them a 10 minute head start, then off we went.
The mobile receiver picks up a signal coming from the missing person's wristband.
One officer runs the special equipment, while the other scans the area.
When the beeping gets faster and louder, we know we’re getting close to the person we’re looking for.
Sure enough the Care Trak receiver led us right to Eunice and Robin.
“We went down several trails and zigzagged, hiding behind a tree, and we could hear it getting louder as you got closer,” Robin said.
She knows what it's like to have a loved one go missing.
“We found him pretty quick, but the panic a care giver goes through is off the chart,” Robin said.
This life saving technology can help find special needs children, too.
“The same thing on a mother that has an autistic child, because they move pretty quick,” Eunice said.
Signing up for a bracelet is easy.
Sunbeam Family Services offers the program to Oklahoma City families.
(You must live in Oklahoma City limits, have a responsible adult that monitors your daily activity and be diagnosed with one of the following.)
Alzheimer’s Disease
Dementia
Autism
Down Syndrome
Traumatic Brain Injury
Cognitive Impairment
They’re offering a reduced rate for those with a limited income.
Sunbeam is always accepting more donations to keep the program going.