Kirk Moody’s wife, who had early onset Alzheimer’s, was visiting the Los Angeles County Museum of Art exactly nine years ago in 2016 when she wandered away from her group and went missing.

His wife, Nancy Paulikas, was never found despite extensive searching. Authorities discovered the Manhattan Beach woman’s remains more than two years later, miles away from the museum in Sherman Oaks.

“It took 26 months to learn we would not find her alive. She had passed,” Moody said on Wednesday, Oct. 15, at an event put on by the LA County Aging & Disabilities Department and the related L.A. Found program. On the anniversary of her death, the agencies announced new technology not available in 2016 being used for tracking individuals with Alzheimer’s, dementia, autism or other cognitive conditions should they go missing.

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Speaking from the Olive Court at Gloria Molina Grand Park in downtown Los Angeles, Moody and others said the county agencies are giving out the Theora Care Smartwatch, a GPS-enabled device worn on the wrist that enables real-time location tracking and sends out  instant alerts to caregivers via an app on their smartphones if the person wanders away from a pre-set, geofencing safe zone. It also has an SOS button the wearer can push.

So far, the county department and L.A. Found have given out a few dozen of these new smartwatches and wants those who care for family members who have cognitive impairment conditions that make them prone to wandering and becoming lost to receive the devices, which are free.

The device helps the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department to pinpoint search zones. The smartwatch technology is often paired with a Project Lifesaver bracelet program. The bracelet gives off radio signals helping first responders locate and track the lost individual. More than 1,800 bracelets have been distributed since L.A. Found began in 2018.

These devices are substantial improvements from the old-fashioned street grid system that was once used, by shrinking the search area often to one address or location, said LASD Commander Geff Deedrick.

“By having this technology that enables us to track them; we have found those with autism whom we’ve learned tend to want to go to water. We can get to them more quickly and stop them from the risk of drowning,” Deedrick told those gathered at the event.

In Los Angeles County, more than 190,000 older adults are living with Alzheimer’s or dementia. Also, 1 in 22 children in California have been diagnosed with autism.

Kate Movius, founder of Autism Interaction Solutions and an L.A. Found Task Force member, said statistics show that the mortality rate for missing persons with autism is increasing. Her son wandered away when he was 14 and ended up hospitalized as a John Doe, she said.

About 91% of wandering deaths for people with autism are due to drowning, according to L.A. Found.

“It really is a matter of life and death,” Movius said.

Jordan Nichole Wall, 27, of Chatsworth, with Down syndrome, has taken off while at the beach and even while shopping with her mom at Home Depot, said her mother, Mary Brown. She said it’s part of her daughter’s curious, impulsive nature to run off without telling her where she’s going.

“She’s not trying to run away from us,” said Brown. “Just like today, she saw a beautiful dog and ran right to him. Because of things like that, she does end up missing sometimes. It happens a lot.”

Brown re-told an incident at Santa Monica beach with her daughter and 25 friends and relatives. When they changed spots and moved two lifeguard stations away to meet up with the rest of their family, Wall didn’t follow along and went missing. She wasn’t found until well after sunset, said her mom.

“Had we had a device like this we could’ve found her much quicker,” said Brown. Just then, her daughter held up her right arm and showed off her new smartwatch with tracking capabilities, eliciting a round of applause from the audience.

Likewise, Janet Rivera, cares for her mother, Martha Jaramillo, 79, with dementia, and her son, Kenny Rivera, 25, who has cognitive disabilities that causes him to be a runner, as his mother put it. She found solace in them having the new tracking smartwatch device.

“I am getting older and I can’t run as fast,” said Janet Rivera. “For us parents, with a son with special needs and a mom with dementia, it (having the smartwatch and bracelets) is a lot about the peace of mind we get.”

Just knowing that their child or parent running off or getting lost is not the end of the world, makes a difference. They stay more calm and can use the location information to help find them. Also, if the LASD’s Mental Evaluation Team (MET) needs to be called, the team members can act more quickly and accurately, Deedrick said.

”Every family member or caregiver deserves the peace of mind knowing your loved one will be found if they go missing,” said Fourth District LA County Supervisor Janice Hahn, who spoke at the event and co-authored the motion in 2018 that launched L.A. Found.

To learn more about the program and how to apply, visit: ad.lacounty.gov/LAFOUND or call: 1-833-569-7651.