Police are searching for Hilda Sossong, 86, who has been missing since Monday afternoon. Courtesy photo

PORTAGE – After two days without food or water, Munster Township resident Hilda Sossong, 86, was found Wednesday afternoon exactly as her family had described her: happy with a huge smile on her face.

Sossong was found by her son, Gerard, sitting on a log off of Spinner Road in Munster Township. She was taken to Conemaugh Memorial Medical Center shortly after.

“She’s well, she’s talking, she’s coherent, she’s smiling,” said Hilda’s granddaughter Rosalie Orlu. “It’s amazing.”

The search to find Sossong, who is believed to have dementia, began Monday afternoon after she wandered away from her family farm at 400 Patrick Road, Munster Township.

In the end, Gerard found her while driving on Spinner Road, according to Andrea Sossong, Hilda’s daughter-in-law, whose eyes welled up with tears while describing the situation.

“She was great,” Andrea said of Hilda’s condition. “It’s unbelievable that she was in the woods for 48 hours.”

Teamwork made for successful outcome

Hundreds of volunteers came together and gave their all to find Sossong during the last three days, Andrea said, adding about 100 people showed up to search for Sossong Monday night after she was reported missing.

On Tuesday, Andrea said nearly 200 volunteer searchers covered over 150 acres of property.

“We’ve had an amazing response” from the community, she said.

Although Monday’s and Tuesday’s searches were not successful, they didn’t lose hope and continued their search Wednesday morning, she said, adding the family went canvassing – knocking door to door throughout Portage – to see if anyone had seen Hilda recently.

The family also posted missing person signs throughout the town, including at the Portage Area Public Library along Main Street and Stager’s Store along Dulancey Drive.

“People have been really receptive to doing what they can and just doing it without even asking,” said Orlu earlier in the day, before Sossong was found.

Friends and family members walked for hours while searching several nearby properties, Andrea said, noting that Cambria County Box 11 and many local businesses donated food and water for the search and rescue teams.

One business, The Box Car in Lilly, provided subs for searchers.

Owner Gretchen Yarnish said she and her husband wanted to support Hilda and her family.

Not only did people show their support in person, but online as well, as prayers and supportive messages flooded social media. Those messages turned to congratulations for answered prayers on Wednesday after an update stated that Hilda had been found.

“It’s tremendously uplifting to see a community and a family come together like this and to get such good news that she’s going to be fine. That’s the best thing you could hope for,” said Nina Wolf of the Mountaineer Area Rescue Group’s north division rescue squad.

Wolf was on hand Wednesday morning as the family continued their search for Hilda.

Carol Thompson of the Bedford County Wilderness Search team was also on hand with her search dog, Lexi, a 5-year-old lab certified in both operational live-find trailing and water and land human remains detection.

They used ground teams, drones and dogs to conduct grid searches of the nearby properties, Wolf said.

The area in which Hilda was found was searched heavily by foot earlier in the day, but “she just happened to come out of the woods wherever she was,” Wolf said, adding, “it’s a great thing.”

Search teams were assisted by multiple fire departments, the Pennsylvania State Police Aviation Patrol Unit, the Pennsylvania Game Commission tracking team and K-9 units, according to a press release.

Wolf said that a successful search like this one requires many different resources since search groups cover varied terrain.

“It’s not just bloodhounds, it’s not just drones, it’s not just ground searches. It’s everything,” she said.

Celebration and memories

After she was found, Hilda’s friends and family gathered at her home Wednesday afternoon, embracing each other with hugs and sharing personal memories.

In 1956, Hilda married Tom Sossong Sr., who was in much better spirits Wednesday after his wife of 69 years was found.

“We have a pretty big family,” he said.

Tom said Hilda loves spending time with everyone on their farm, including their children, Myra, Mark, Tommy and Gerard, their grandchildren and great-grandchildren.

“She wanted to be here every day,” he said.

Described as quiet and nice, the family said she would probably smile at people and not appear confused or lost.

She would just act like she was happy to see you, even if she didn’t know you, Andrea said.

“She has a kind heart,” she added.

Hilda started to develop signs of dementia maybe a year or so ago, Tom said. Since then, the family has kept a close eye on her.

“I don’t let her go anywhere unless I go with her,” he said, adding he never dreamed that she would become lost.

Friends, neighbors and the community at large – in person and on social media – celebrated with the family Wednesday afternoon.

“I can’t believe we did it,” Orlu said. “The family community stuck together. … We still had an outcome that nobody expected.”

Mirror Staff Writers Matt Churella and Colette Costlow are at 814-946-7520 and 814-946-7414, respectively.