BOSTON -- The Amber Alert has been proven to save lives. Now a new version of that alert system is helping authorities in 15 states find missing adults with memory problems.

As NewsCenter 5's Rhondella Richardson reported Tuesday, the Alzheimer's Association is backing a proposal that would bring the Silver Alert system to Massachusetts.

Jim and Julia Wallace, of Cambridge, Mass., have been happily married for almost 51 years.

"Not without bumps. I don't know any couple that doesn't have their bumps. But the point is, we road through them together," Wallace, Julia's husband, said.

A major bump came three years ago when Julia was diagnosed with Alzheimer's disease.

"It was not welcome when she was having some memory and orientation problems," he said.

Wallace realized how dangerous the combination can be when his wife wandered off recently. They were at the theater, and she had to use the ladies room. But the theatre was closing and she was missing.

"She was nowhere to be found in the building. So my heart just sank," Wallace said.

"Sixty percent of people with the disease will wander and become lost," said Gerald Flaherty, vice president of Medical & Scientific Programs for the Alzheimer's Association.

Flaherty is an expert on wandering behavior in Alzheimer's patients. He also supports a new bill proposing a so-called Silver Alert system in Massachusetts. It's designed to help authorities track down adults with memory problems who go missing.

"Anywhere from a third to up to 45 percent of folks will die after 24 hours if they're not found," Flaherty said.

Flaherty says even though 90 percent of seniors who wander away are found, it can be difficult to find them. He says they tend to panic and seek shelter in places most of us would not go.

"I've been involved in cases where people were found behind dumpsters," Flaherty said.

He said seniors with memory problems need the Silver Alert system so when they go missing, the media and police are notified immediately to help them return home. It's a safety system Wallace hopes will be in place if his beloved wife gets lost again.