But, they said, police response and the dogged search for Lonnie Capps kept their hopes alive.
Lonnie lives with his son, Dan, daughter-in-law Lisa and his grandsons in the 1200 block of Hillcrest Road. The family just moved to the city about a month ago. Dealing with Alzheimer’s is something the family has become accustomed to, and Lonnie has his daily routine.
“He liked to sit outside here and smoke,” Lisa said at the house late Sunday. “He would walk around the yard and the house but never went far - he never went out the driveway.” Lonnie had his supper and went outside to enjoy a couple of cigarettes before a snack and bedtime. Neighbors saw him there between 7:30 and 8 p.m.
At about 8:30 p.m. Lisa realized her father-in-law hadn’t come in for his snack.
“That was unusual,” Lisa said. “He loves his food. He has always been a good eater.” The family searched the yard and the field across the street. There are more bushes within walking distance of the house, and the roads are narrow with heavy growth on both sides. There were no lights to guide them, just winding roads with Loop 363 bordering one end. After they called the police for help, Dan continued the search.
“I drove down the road to look for him and came back. I didn’t believe he could be too far away.” When he returned to the house Temple Police Sgt. Gary Smith, watch commander, was at the door and said to him, “We are doing everything that we can to find your father.”
“I couldn’t believe what I saw next - it seemed that I just turned around and there were police everywhere,” Dan said.
By 11 p.m. Deputy Chief John Scharf had spread a map on the trunk of his car and was coordinating the search.
Scanner traffic had an urgent tone as police officers scoured the streets, increasing the perimeter around the home with each search. The family was sitting outside with neighbors who had last seen Lonnie outside when Chief Gary O. Smith advised the family that a helicopter would soon be searching with infrared capabilities and a spotlight.
Not long after, the chopper flew overhead, making the darkness seem like daylight.
The family started to think about the day’s events. Lisa, Lonnie’s full-time caretaker, asked herself why she hadn’t noticed when her father-in-law didn’t come in for his snack. Dan looked up at the helicopter as it searched, wondering how his father had been able to disappear so quickly. At 2 a.m. the family’s hopes dipped a little. Six hours had passed since Lonnie disappeared.
Hope was renewed when the family was told tracking dogs were on their way from Gatesville.
Text messages were made to and from other members of the family, keeping them updated. No one in the Capps family would get any sleep Sunday night. At about 3 a.m. the dogs had arrived and a pillowcase from Lonnie’s bed would provide the scent they needed to track Lonnie. Lisa placed the pillowcase in a plastic baggie and handed it to the officers from Gatesville. The howling of the hounds as they headed off down the dark road meant they had picked up his scent.
Temple Police Sgt. Brad Hunt arrived to speak to the family after having spent 75 minutes in the air searching. The chopper was being refueled before continuing its search in the area where the dogs had picked up the
scent.
Hunt left and was once again in the air when some time after 5a.m. an officer reported over the scanner that Lonnie had been found in a field off East Downs.
“What we heard is the officer had driven into the field and asked dad if he was Lonnie Capps and dad said he was,” Dan said. Scott & White EMS were called to check on Lonnie who seemed to be in good health apart from a few scratches on his arms and a cut on his head. He was taken to the hospital for a thorough examination.
A happy and relieved family said Monday afternoon that Lonnie’s injuries were minor, although a CAT scan revealed some fluid on his brain.
“When I saw him I was so relieved,” Dan said. “I just can’t believe how the police didn’t stop from the moment we reported him missing.
“Even when we got to the hospital there was an officer there who told us everything he could before we saw Dad.”
On Monday Dan asked his father, “Did you get lost, Dad?”
His reply was, “No I just didn’t know how to get back.” Dan said that was odd.
“It has been so many years since we had heard that kind of sense of humor,” he said.
Lonnie remains at the hospital while some tests are done.
“They want to do an MRI and just check him out,” an exhausted Dan said. “When he gets home the police will be giving him a Fast Track bracelet,” he said. “That will bring a lot of relief to our family. The fact that this will never happen again is a huge relief.” Dan, Lisa and their sons were thankful for all the police did.
“Dad may never know exactly what happened. He probably won’t remember it - but we will. I just don’t know how to thank them.”
Clients of Operation Fast Track wear a special bracelet that emits a tracking signal. When the patient’s caregivers or family contact authorities, they respond to that area and use the tracking system to find the missing patient, often reducing search times from hours to minutes.
