Friday, October 01, 1999
Alzheimer's victim believed dead in Tennessee
BY EARNEST WINSTON
The Cincinnati Enquirer
Police say Benjamin Oglesby apparently stretched out underneath a tree more than 200 miles from his Paddock Hills home and died. They speculate he was disoriented or tired from wandering.
Authorities with tracking dogs found a badly decomposed body thought to be Mr. Oglesby's on Tuesday in a remote area of Fentress County, Tenn. — seven miles off a paved road. He apparently had abandoned his red pickup after it became stuck in mud a mile from the tree.
Mr. Oglesby, 73, who was in the early stages of Alzheimer's disease, had been missing since Aug. 20, the day he told his family he was going to have his glasses repaired in nearby Roselawn.
Authorities used documents from Mr. Oglesby's wallet to tentatively identify his body. Tests done on shoe tracks near the truck — which was found last weekend — matched his shoes.
A positive identification is expected to be made today, using medical and dental records, said Chief Deputy Wendell Reagan of the Fentress County Sheriff's Department.
“So far, we've found nothing to indicate it was foul play,” Chief Deputy Reagan said, adding that the body had no visible signs of trauma.
Cynthia Oglesby said her father may have become disoriented and drove to Fentress County, a rural county about 90 miles northwest of Knoxville. Her father, who is from Indiana, has no ties to Tennessee.
“All along the Lord has kind of prepared us for this,” said Ms. Oglesby of North Avondale. “I'm just glad there's some closure.”
The search for Mr. Oglesby included family members from as far away as Florida, neighbors and fellow churchgoers. He was a retired supervisor at the Ford Motor Co.
The minister at Calvary United Methodist Church in Evanston said members prayed daily for Mr. Oglesby, a longtime member. He also was a former president of the church's board of trustees.
“He was a doer. He was an active person, either at home or at the church. His gentle smile, we will miss that,” said the Rev. William Davis.
Diana Trenkamp, executive director of the Greater Cincinnati Chapter of the Alzheimer's Association, said Mr. Oglesby's death “demonstrates that families face a very, very difficult dilemma in restricting someone's autonomy because of a need to protect them.”
Ms. Oglesby said the family is considering burying her father in his hometown in Indiana.
“I was Daddy's girl,” Ms. Oglesby said. “There was nothing my father wouldn't do for me. I will miss that feeling of being Daddy's little girl — even though I'm almost 40 years old.”
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