By Audra Hurston Anders
I learned a lot during the disappearance of my Granddaddy last weekend. Some lessons I learned were hard lessons, others sweet and simple. I’ll share some of those lessons here since so many of you were full of compassion, interest, and offers to help. I’ll end my notes with some details about his adventure. One thing that I “re-learned” during Granddaddy’s absence is that there are a TON of people out there in Columbus, Georgia that love and respect my Grandfather and that is truly a really special thing to know!
1. I’m a Project Manager at my real job so it’s interesting to note that upon arrival at the scene I approached Granddaddy’s disappearance as the biggest project of my life. Many of my Global Fortune 50 customers think their deadlines are matters life and death but in this case it was surreal because my “Project Granddaddy” WAS TRULY about life and death.
2. I learned that my mother having Power of Attorney for my Granddaddy is a wonderful thing! It helped when talking to the banks and credit card companies when trying to track him down based on his expenditures.
3. I learned that you can’t EVER just sit back and wait for things to happen when in an emergency situation. You must pro-actively involve the police, the media, the credit card companies, the churches, the synagogues, the hospitals, the banks, your friends and family…everyone you can think of and that you must go back again and again to make sure everyone is being proactive. My most frustrating hard lesson was that many people didn’t quite “get” the urgency of our situation.
4. I learned from Atlanta media friends (Thanks David L!) about “Mattie’s Call” but the folks in Columbus were clueless about it. My husband’s Aunt got the GBI involved and therefore we eventually got an official “Mattie’s Call” but may have found him sooner if it had been issued upon our original call to the Police.
5. I learned that there are many people who will make judgments without knowing or understanding the full circumstances. It is difficult for grown children to balance making tough decisions for their elderly parents who yearn for independence. It’s very difficult to balance maintaining their respect while continuing to care for them and keep them (and others) safe. Alzheimer’s is a terrible disease that moves at a different pace in everyone that it attacks. We could all be there one day.
6. I learned that the world is full of wonderful people who will drop EVERYTHING to help a friend or stranger in need. Every retail establishment in Columbus, GA that was asked to put a flyer on their door said YES! The folks at Wal-mart where he was last seen on Thursday could not have been sweeter. (Wal-Mart needed a little prompting to bring in someone to view the security tapes but when I reminded about the severity of the situation they complied.)
7. Social Media is amazing. I’ve never been a big fan of Facebook. I simply don’t have extra time to “do” Facebook well. As I laid down in my Grandfather’s empty bed on Friday night and my head was spinning with thoughts about where he might be and that I couldn’t go to bed no matter how tired I was! I picked up my iPhone and thought….I need to post this on FB. Half my FB friends are from my hometown which is about 30 miles from the Wal-Mart where Granddaddy was last seen. You would not believe how quickly the news spread the moment I posted on Facebook. As a result it wasn’t hard for my FOX News Friend to talk me into sending out an Aha! Connection plea for help and boy was I surprised at how many of my Aha! Subscribers had Columbus connections that immediately sprang into action!
8. I learned I can’t do EVERYTHING and that delegating is necessary. My husband was a rock during this nightmare. In addition to making sure my boys were safe in Dunwoody, he was also “command central” from home and was responsible for bringing in abundant resources. He engaged his Aunt from Columbus who brought in Christian Radio, the GBI, and countless other local resources. My brother was creator of the flyers and was actually the one posting FB and email updates throughout the day from my email address. My Dad was my chauffeur and took me to all of Granddaddy’s hangouts, the police station and all around town handing out flyers. My mom handled the phone calls at Granddaddy’s house…praying each time the phone rang that it would be good news. My Uncle kept riding around to Granddaddy’s hangouts looking and looking while making food and supply runs for all of us. My cousin and her husband who are Columbus residents started the social media campaign for us on Saturday and by 10 AM Saturday I think everyone in Columbus was looking for him!
9. I learned that I will never leave town without my laptop ever again. My Granddaddy’s computer STINKS!
10. Finally, I’ve always believed in the power of prayer but my faith and beliefs were strengthened through this ordeal. On Saturday because of friends, Facebook, the Aha! Connection, the news Media, the Internet, Mattie’s call, email, Twitter etc that the number of people who new about Granddaddy and were praying for him increased exponentially. All of those prayers prompted angels to guide Granddaddy safely back home to where he RANG THE DOORBELL AT HIS OWN FRONT DOOR. The sweetest words I’ve ever heard in my entire life were those spoken by my mother upon answering the door when she exclaimed: “DADDY, Where have you BEEN?!”
I’m not sure we’ll ever know exactly where he was for almost 48 hours. He was scared, relieved, thirsty, dehydrated and wobbly on his feet when we brought him in the house. He said he will never get in the car again without someone else. (Mama has possession of his keys permanently now and has a 24/7 watchful eye on him!) What we do know is this:
- He consumed 2 Dr. Peppers during the trip and we don’t think he had anything else.
- He drove over 1,000 miles in less than 48 hours and filled up his gas tank in three places ranging from near Auburn, AL, Birmingham, AL, and Dawson, GA before arriving back in Columbus.
- He had plenty of cash and all of the contents of his wallet intact.
We have a long journey ahead with this awful disease that has attacked my Grandfather. We will continue to learn lessons as we love him through this but I can assure you he is safe and sound and well cared for because we all have a whole new appreciation for how fast the disease can spread.
Thank you to each and every one of you who prayed, emailed, called, posted etc. in order to help me! I’m amazed at the generosity of others!
