By Jim Newell
Review Editor
LAKE ORION — An elderly Lake Orion woman was returned safely to her family after a bit of amateur sleuthing from two Village of Lake Orion DPW employees.
A woman was out walking on North Shore Drive on Friday morning when she spotted an elderly woman wandering on the road with a confused look on her face.
The woman flagged down DPW employee Sam Hicks, who was out on North Shore Drive working, and said the elderly woman appeared to be lost.
Hicks then called Village of Lake Orion DPW director Wes Sanchez and filled him in on the situation.
“I was in the (Village Hall) office and when he contacted me I went to (police) dispatch and asked if there were any officers available. She (the dispatch officer) said all the police officers are tied up in court right now. So, I said I would go over and check it out,” Sanchez said.
When Sanchez arrived a few minutes later, he found Hicks and the concerned woman – who had given the elderly woman her jacket – trying to help out.
“She was walking down North Shore and didn’t have a coat on and it was really cold out,” Sanchez said.
Sanchez asked the woman how she was doing. “She said she was really confused and didn’t know her name, so we just kept talking to her. Finally, she remembered her name, so I called dispatch.”
The Lake Orion police dispatcher was then able to give Sanchez an address for the woman, so they all got into a DPW vehicle and drove to the address. However, when they arrived at the home Sanchez could tell the woman did not live there anymore.
“Nobody answered the door and it looked like nobody had been there in a long time. So, I went to a neighbor’s house to see if they recognized her and they said, yeah that was the lady who lived there but she had not lived there recently. She lives with her daughter now.”
Sanchez was able to get the woman’s daughter’s name and that she lived on North Shore Drive.
“So, we went back to North Shore and just started knocking on doors. One of the residents said she recognized her, she’s the neighbor’s mom,” Sanchez said.
They went next door and talked to the woman’s son-in-law.
“He said, ‘Oh my gosh, she must have snuck out while I was working in the garage,’” Sanchez said. “So, we got her home safe.”
For Sanchez, situations like this, where they can help people in need, typifies what the village is all about.
“We would do this for anybody. We love the people in this community and that’s what we’re here for, to help out,” Sanchez said.
Village Councilmember Michael Lamb is a strong supporter of the DPW and commends Sanchez and Hicks for helping return the woman to her family.
“I’m so glad this worked out for this woman and her family. I’m sure they were relieved to have her home safely,” Lamb said. “We have a lot of seniors in our community and this is the biggest fear for caregiving family members.”
He praised Sanchez and Hicks and said their knowledge and presence in the community is what helped them return the woman home safely.
“I’m so proud of our DPW. I’ve got to commend them for going way above the call of duty and rescuing this lady. Wes reached out to the community and knew people he could call and they networked out and found this lady’s family,” Lamb said. “I don’t know how we could get a better person as our DPW director. He’s a great asset to the village.”