Michael Black Obituary, Death; – A Wyoming man suffering from dementia, who was reported missing and later recognized by his wife on a nightly television broadcast hundreds of miles away in Salt Lake City, has passed away shortly after returning home.
Michael Black, aged 91, developed influenza just days after he and his wife, Avril Black, aged 77, returned to Afton, Wyoming.
“I thought to myself, ‘This is not good,’” Avril Black recounted to KSL-TV. “The nurses indicated he could be discharged, but his condition was not going to improve. He had issues with both his heart and kidneys.”
He collapsed and died on Thursday, one week after his return from Utah, as reported by Black. Michael Black had gone missing on November 25, hitchhiking over 200 miles to reach Salt Lake City, with tips from the public assisting police in tracking his whereabouts.
By November 27, he had arrived at a rescue mission in Salt Lake City. KSL-TV filmed a segment on providing meals for the homeless during Thanksgiving, which Avril Black viewed that evening.
She recognized her husband among the many individuals at the shelter. On Thanksgiving Day, she traveled to Salt Lake City to bring him home. Shortly after their return, Michael Black developed a cough and ultimately passed away under home hospice care, according to his wife.
“It was his time, and he had an adventure that he enjoyed. That’s life, I suppose. Perhaps he is in a better place now,” Avril Black reflected. The couple had been married for 47 years.
