SHOSHONE Co, Idaho --- State officials in Idaho said Silver Alerts are something they have looked in to, but it is something they feel that they are not really necessary.
They said that local media outlets already do a good enough job of getting the word out about missing people.
It has been a rough week for Sherry Walker of Osburn.
Last week, she reported her ex-husband 63-year-old Dan Walker as missing after he reportedly walked away from a bus stop in Kellogg.
Walker is bi-polar, has schizophrenia and shows the early signs of dementia.
When it came to hopefully putting out some kind of a widespread notification in Idaho, Walker was told that not much could be done.
"We were told Idaho doesn't have a Silver Alert,” Walker said.
For some background information, Silver Alert messages are designed for endangered missing people who are 60 years or older.
In Washington, Silver Alerts appear on highway reader board signs.
Unlike an Amber alert, Silver Alerts do not show up on your TV and you do not get a text and email notifications unless you sign up to receive them.
More than 40 states use Silver Alerts. Idaho is one of the few that does not.
"It really makes me mad that we don't have that Silver Alert,” Walker said.
An agency spokesperson said that Silver Alerts are something that ISP's advisory council has discussed extensively.
That council came to conclusion that interrupting broadcast programing for an alert like this would not be necessary.
The council said they feel that local news outlets do a good enough job as is getting the word out about missing elderly people.
In Dan Walker's case, the local Sheriff's office posted on their Facebook page of his missing along with KREM 2 News.
For now, Sherry Walker is left hoping that this image is shared as many times as possible.
"All I want is him found. That's all I want is him found,” Walker said.