A 77-year-old Canton man with early-onset dementia who vanished during what was supposed to be a simple golf outing has been found safe, according to the Stark County Sheriff's Office. Terry Lee Zinslen left home Monday morning and never returned, setting off a search that stretched as far as neighboring West Virginia before he was located.
Zinslen was last seen in the 1100 block of 39th Street SW in Canton, according to a Stark County Sheriff's Office post on Facebook. He had left for a planned golf outing and was driving a black 2011 Cadillac SRX bearing the license plate GGE3606. Deputies described him as 5 feet 7 inches tall and about 145 pounds, with brown-gray hair and hazel eyes, and said he was last seen wearing gray pants and a pink shirt.
Investigators said they believed Zinslen may have ended up in West Virginia, a theory that lines up with Canton's location along Interstate 77, which runs roughly 90 miles south to the West Virginia border near Wheeling and Parkersburg. A disoriented driver on that interstate could cross state lines within a couple of hours, which is part of why authorities moved quickly to broadcast his description across jurisdictions.
There was some early confusion about exactly when Zinslen disappeared. Initial public notices had listed his departure as occurring Tuesday morning, but online community reporting from Jordan Miller – News clarified that this was a typographical error, and that relatives confirmed he actually left Monday morning.
How Wandering Puts Seniors With Dementia at Risk
Zinslen's case fits a pattern well known to caregivers and researchers. The Alzheimer's Association reports that six in 10 people living with dementia will wander away from safety at least once during their illness, and many will wander repeatedly, often at unpredictable stages of cognitive decline. More than 236,000 Ohio residents currently live with Alzheimer's disease, and state health officials estimate that up to half of those cases remain formally undiagnosed, according to the Alzheimer's Impact Movement.
Stark County's demographics make cases like this one increasingly common. Census data cited by WYSO shows Stark County is among more than 25 Ohio counties where adults 65 and older now outnumber children under 18. The county's population tops 370,000, and its share of older residents continues to grow, adding urgency to how local agencies respond when a senior goes missing.
Ohio's Alert System and What Comes Next
Cases involving vulnerable seniors can trigger Ohio's Endangered Missing Adult Alert, a program established in 2008 and managed by the Ohio Attorney General's Bureau of Criminal Investigation. To activate it, local law enforcement must confirm the missing person is at least 65 or has a medically diagnosed mental impairment, and that the disappearance poses a credible threat of serious physical harm or death. Once triggered, the alert pushes descriptions across emergency broadcast channels, LEADS terminals, and social media, with BCI's 24/7 Missing Persons Unit hotline at 1-855-BCI-OHIO coordinating with local departments on search efforts.
The system has a strong track record. In 2022, BCI issued 146 Endangered Missing Adult Alerts across 38 counties, and all but one of those missing adults were located or returned home safely. Hoodline previously reported on a similar case involving a missing 72-year-old woman with dementia in Wickliffe. For families facing a loved one's progressive cognitive decline, Stark County Probate Court also has the authority to terminate powers of attorney and establish adult guardianships when relatives can show the person can no longer safely manage their own safety or finances, according to Court News Ohio.
The Stark County Sheriff's Office, which serves more than 370,000 residents, maintains a non-emergency dispatch line at 330-430-3800 along with a mobile app used to broadcast emergency notices and collect public tips. In its post announcing Zinslen's disappearance, the office had asked the public to share the notice widely to help spread the word, a step credited with helping resolve missing senior cases quickly across the state.
