The family of Graham Roskell have issued a family statement thanking the public for their support.
Mr Roskell went missing on 3 November 2012 from Harrogate hospital but was later found deceased in Woodland near Wetherby.
The missing person saw a massive call to action from the public with many taking to the countryside in search of him.
Graham Roskell’s daughter, Nicola Sawyer, spoke for the family :
It is really only when something truly devastating and awful happens that you get to see the true nature of people.
Over the last few weeks our family has experienced our Dad (Graham Roskell) being struck down with a brain condition which saw him deteriorate into confusion and disorientation over a fairly short period of time. Whilst this alone was devastating enough, following this, he went missing from hospital only a few days into his treatment. Despite a huge effort to try and find him in order to complete his treatment and return the man we loved back to us, ultimately we received the news we had all feared when his body was found in woods near Wetherby 12 days after he went missing.
It was during this nightmare roller-coaster that we saw the kind and generous side of people from places near and far. Friends, colleagues and complete strangers went out searching, helped us organise search parties, cooked us food, put up posters, and so much more. We literally had thousands of messages of support, and we know from many sources that there were people out helping who we never even had any contact with.
Although these were dark days for our family, it was good to have the support of so many people helping us to get a man many did not know back to his family. There have been so many people it has been genuinely impossible to thank everyone individually, much as though we would like to.
As well as the support of volunteers, we cannot praise highly enough the unrelenting efforts of the Police to find him. We would also like to specifically thank the volunteers of both Mountain Rescue, and the International Rescue Corps who gave up their time and effort in the search.
We have always been a private family, and we know that Dad would not have relished all this attention, but I know he would have been amazed and grateful for the help and support we have received as a family. Although we have clearly been devastated by the loss of our Dad, it has genuinely been humbling to read through the messages of support we have received, and in some cases meet some of the good people who gave up their time.
We are determined that something good should come out of all of the heartache and efforts of everyone pulling together in a time of turmoil. Our Dad was a great lover of nature and the great outdoors, and as such our family is currently working with the Yorkshire Dales Millennium Trust in order to try and create a brand new woodland in the Yorkshire Dales in memory of him, but this is also something that we can all enjoy and benefit from.
Our aim is to get 800 trees, at a cost of £10 each, and we have already made significant headway in reaching that goal.
If you would like to donate, please see the website www.findgraham.co.uk for more details, otherwise if you do not have access to the internet you can also donate via telephone by calling the Yorkshire Dales Millennium Trust on 015242 51002. You will need to specify that your donation is in memory of Graham Roskell, to ensure that it counts towards our total.
This new woodland should not only serve as a fitting memorial to our dear Dad, but also as testament to the kindness, and selflessness of people from all walks of life pulling together to help one family, and one man when it mattered the most.
