photo by: Lawrence Police Department

Lawrence Police are searching for Wanda Dyer.

It was supposed to be a time for Wanda and David Dyer to celebrate almost half a century of loving each other. But instead, David has experienced a week of anxious waiting, searching and hoping — hoping that his missing wife is safe and that she’ll come back home.

David hasn’t heard from Wanda since March 21, when the 74-year-old former librarian left their apartment at Fifth and California streets and didn’t return. All that she left was a note that said she was going to the bank, David said.

“Our wedding anniversary was a couple days ago, our 46th wedding anniversary, and she wasn’t here to celebrate,” David said with a heavy sigh.

Wanda has had memory issues for a couple of years, David said, but in the last few weeks those troubles have grown more extreme. Now, Lawrence police are working to figure out where Wanda is, and they’ve put out a Silver Alert and asked for the public’s help.

Wanda Dyer is a 5-foot-2 African American woman with short gray hair, and she’s been seen wearing a black coat with a pink lining, or possibly a hoodie, and multicolored pants. Police are asking people who’ve seen her to call dispatchers at (785) 843-0250.

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David said he and Wanda first met each other through mutual friends, and he quickly fell for her.

“At the time, she had a big afro and looked like like a ’60s revolutionary,” he said. “I found her immediately attractive. For some reason, she found me attractive enough to marry me.”

He said Wanda has always loved books, and she spent her whole career working with them. For 30 years she worked in the catalog section of the libraries at the University of Kansas, and she was with the Kansas City Public Library before that, he said.

“She loves books,” he said. “… We have a house full of books. Our house looks like a library.”

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Over the past week, Wanda has been spotted at various locations in and around Lawrence, David said. He said she was reported as far away as East 1500 Road, walking toward Eudora, and as close as right outside their home.

“Some of the neighbors saw her Sunday sitting on the curb 50 feet from our apartment, looking terribly confused,” he said. “But they didn’t know she was missing, so they didn’t say anything about it to anybody.”

The most recent sighting that David had heard about was on Thursday, “right outside of Chipotle, on Mass. Street, arguing with two people.”

“And that’s one of the symptoms of dementia, is they might get angry for no reason,” David said. He said it gave him hope that she was still alive and had enough energy to argue.

Wanda was spotted by someone who he was told works as a security guard in the area, but the security guard did not call the police. David said he was “a little angry” that someone with a duty to protect people didn’t do more to get help.

“She’s been out for a week,” he said. “She has no money — so how is she eating and getting something to drink? — and we don’t know where she’s been.

“I got a little angry when I heard about the security guard. It really ticked me off that he didn’t call the police,” David said.

The police department has devoted significant resources to locating Wanda, said spokeswoman Laura McCabe. She said the search is now being handled by the department’s investigations division. There’s a detective leading the search, an officer dedicated to following up on tips and sightings, and another officer pulling surveillance footage from places where Wanda has been seen.

David said he is grateful to the department for their efforts and to the community at large. He said a friend of his has been organizing search parties in the evenings all week, where after work several people have been going out to look for Wanda.

“I’m just amazed at how helpful people in the community are. I’m absolutely astounded how hard the Lawrence police have been working on this. It’s just amazing,” David said.

But there’s always an element of uncertainty. McCabe said there’s not a consistent answer for how long Silver Alert investigations might take.

“How long can it last?” McCabe said. “Until we find her.”

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For now, David and daughter Phoenix Dyer have been looking for Wanda at libraries and bookstores and at places she frequents like the Casey’s grocery store and Dollar General near their home. They’ve printed flyers and put them up across town.

To those who are looking for her, David advised that Wanda can get around quite easily.

“Wanda has a very strong constitution, and especially for a 74-year-old, and she loves to walk,” he said. “She’s a really good walker.”

David said police have reached out to the homeless community, too, in case someone living outside has seen her. He said Wanda is a very kind person and might be seen talking to people who are homeless, but that she would probably stand out to people.

A lot of them know her, just because she’s friendly,” he said, “but Wanda is from a very stable home environment. She’s very square. I don’t mean that in a bad way. She’s just very, you know, she doesn’t use drugs, she doesn’t drink, doesn’t smoke, any of that stuff, yeah? She’s led a quiet life.”

When Wanda is found, David said he wants to make sure she gets checked out at the hospital to make sure she’s physically well.

“She has just been missing for so long,” David said.

And he knows the first thing he’ll say to her when he sees her again: “I love you.”