THE family of an Alzheimer’s sufferer who has been missing for 19 days say they have all but given up hope of finding him alive.

Jesse Shaw, 83, was last seen leaving his home of 18 years in Ingham Street at around 4.30pm on October 17.

Only hours earlier he had been seen “laughing and joking” at his grandson’s 18th birthday party, the last time many of his family saw him.

Police, family, friends, and even total strangers have all helped comb the countryside of East Lancashire over the last two-and-a-half weeks, but they have failed to find Jesse.

Yesterday his daughters Julie Shaw, 44, and Sandra Heyworth, 41, told the Lancashire Telegraph they were almost certain they were not going to find their dad alive “A tiny percentage of us hopes someone has taken him in and is looking after him,” Julie, a property developer who lives in Clowbridge, said. “But we don’t expect to find him alive now.

“All sorts of things go through your head at a time like this, but we think he has probably gone for a walk, it has got dark earlier than expected, and he has got lost.”

Sandra, who lives in Nelson, said police, air ambulance and the mountain rescue team had done “everything possible” in the search for Jesse, while groups of family, friends and neighbours have also helped search.

“We have been out so many times,” she said. “We’ve covered all the surrounding area, sometimes more than once, and can’t find him.

“People we don’t even know have turned up at the house and offered to help.

"It has been overwhelming and we can’t thank people enough. Padiham has an incredible community spirit.”

Jesse, who has suffered from Alzheimer’s for four years, has spent all his life in Padiham and worked down the pits before starting his own window cleaning business, as well as playing for Padiham Football Club.

Julie said: “He was really well known in the town, mostly because of his business, and he used to drink in The Britannia and the Labour Club a lot.”

The family described Jesse as “fit and healthy” and say he was always taking his trusty German Shepherd dog Sasha for walks.

“After he went missing Sasha would spend all day sitting at the back door waiting for him to come back,” Julie said.

“We took her out on the search a few times to see if she could sniff anything out, but it didn’t work.”