Pokemon Go Player Finds Missing Man With Dementia

A Pokemon Go player is credited with finding a man with dementia who went missing for over 24 hours.

Alison Hines found something besides Pokemon when she went to the local Kenney Shields Park in Covington, KY. The park is a popular spot for Pokemon Go players in the area due its PokeStops and Hines has made visiting the park part of her daily routine.

However, Hines told a local TV station that while driving through the park, she encountered an elderly man wearing a Navy baseball cap. Hines waved to the man, as she was also a Navy veteran, but her instincts told her something was off.

"As I turned the corner, everything in my being said, 'Stop, turn this car around and go check on him,'" she told the TV station.

The man's name was Homer Howard and he was surprised to learn that he was no longer in his home state of Ohio. Howard had gone missing from his hometown of Mainesville, OH, which is approximately 30 miles away from Covington. Howard has dementia and was reported missing by his daughters the day before.

Thanks to Hines' intervention, Howard returned home that evening.

Hines told her local TV station that Pokemon Go has helped her in multiple ways. "I'm very grateful for 'Pokemon Go,'" she said. "What I loved about it is, when I played [the game] it got me out in the community. It was a social game. Today, it saved a man's life."

While Pokemon Go received negative press for its players trespassing on private property or causing damage to parks, many of its players have done plenty of good for their local community. Pokemon Go teamed up with local environmental organizations around the world to promote various Earth Day events, with some big bonuses available if enough players participated. Other organizations have used Pokemon Go to help recruit volunteers for various programs. Back in 2016, a dog shelter received tons of publicity for having Pokemon Go players walk some of their dogs.