By Laurice Laird
A Brixton family has praised the value of social media after being reunited with their missing grandfather. James Fuller, 78, from Brixton – who suffers from dementia and Alzheimer’s – disappeared on January 16, sparking a widespread hunt.
Following a huge campaign on Facebook and Twitter launched by one of his grandchildren, James was found four days later and admitted to hospital.
Granddaughter Shanteh Fuller, 22, told the The Brixton Bugle: “I was quite shocked and overwhelmed by the response I received on Twitter. It was such a surreal thing to know that complete strangers actually had a genuine concern about the whereabouts of our Granddad.”
The appeal reached worldwide proportions, with the public helping to raise awareness. Ms Fuller was surprised to receive such a great response: “I don’t think I ever imagined the reaction to be like that at all. I just thought that posting the appeal on social media may have helped a little bit in an otherwise dire situation.”
There was support received from the local Brixton community in response to the appeal. “The Brixton community was amazing. They put up appeals in the local papers, updated their local authority websites, they allowed us to post flyers everywhere… I believe Brixton is more united than we believe and what it is portrayed to be like in the media. Bless Granddad, he’s completely unaware of the scale of the situation! He didn’t even realise how long he had been away for. But he’s doing well and is being well looked after in a local care home.”
