Why a lovestruck elderly couple are still on the run from their nursing home - and refusing to budge from motel they fled to: 'Dad just doesn't want to be without mum'

By JONICA BRAY, SENIOR NEWS REPORTER, AUSTRALIA Published: 16:22, 15 July 2026 | Updated: 16:29, 15 July 2026 The elderly couple who went on the run after escaping their residential home are still holed up in a motel, as their family revealed it's not the first time it's happened - and it may not be the last. Colin Geraghty, 89, and wife Claudette, 83, fled the Ryman Nellie Melba Retirement Village in Melbourne's south-east on Saturday, just four days after they had moved in. The couple made a 200km cross-country dash across the state before their worried family finally tracked them down 32 hours later in Maryborough, 191km north-west of Melbourne. But the lovestruck couple are still staying inside their motel room and refusing to return to their care home, the Daily Mail can reveal. 'Dad just doesn't want to be without mum and mum's a trooper,' daughter Linda McKelvie told the Daily Mail. 'People are saying it's a great love story and it is. In many ways and I am proud of them for looking after each other.  'I don't know how they pulled it off to be honest with you - it was no easy feat. 'It's a bit unclear what will happen next - I'm sure they would like to do another escape!' Colin Geraghty, 89, and wife Claudette, 83, fled the Ryman Nellie Melba Retirement Village in Melbourne's south-east on Saturday, just four days after they had moved in Family say Colin doesn't want to be without Claudette so broke them out  The couple have been together for 65 years and have a history of escaping aged care homes, with an earlier 'prison break' happening 'not that long ago', Ms McKelvie said. She said she puts it down to her dad being a highly skilled problem solver. 'He is a very clever and intelligent man who had a career investigating small aircraft crashes, and was in the air force before that,' she said. Colin first set his sights on 'social butterfly' Claudette across the dance floor in 1961 and asked her for a spin. Six decades later, the couple now share three children and an ever-growing list of grandchildren, with a fifth great-granddaughter due to join the family soon. But the couple were transferred to their aged care facility after Claudette's medical practitioners said she now needed round-the-clock care. 'They just don't want change really, which is understandable, but dad can't look after her,' Ms McKelvie said. 'It's tricky.  'He has been in a routine for years. He's very fit and capable and manages everyday stuff, but he has Alzheimer's and forgets what he was doing 30 seconds ago.' Colin first set his sights on Claudette, a social butterfly, from across the dance floor and asked her for a spin 65 years ago Their daughter Linda McKelvie launched a desperate appeal to track down her parents  The couple were placed in adjoining rooms on arrival at the new care home last Tuesday, and staff wheeled Colin's bed into his wife's room to keep them together. But Colin, who still drives, was unhappy with the new arrangement - and checked the pair out to go on their road trip across the state. The pair visited The Glen Shopping Centre, on Springvale Road, bought their daily medication and visited their favourite cafe. They were last seen leaving about midday in their white 2015 Mazda 2. The alarm was raised when their neighbour Sharon Jeikishore checked on them later that afternoon and received no answer. The facility had alerted police earlier in the week after the Geraghtys unsuccessfully attempted to leave for the first time. Ms McKelvie also revealed her father had sent her a reassuring message on the day they vanished. 'Don't worry, thank you for your help,' it read. 'I'll make sure I look after her.'  They were last seen leaving a shopping centre at about midday in their white 2015 Mazda 2 The couple have not yet returned to the Nellie Melba Retirement Village  But Ms McKelvie messaged back, terrified for the safety of her parents, who suffer from Alzheimer's and dementia and need daily medication. 'Please come home mum and dad, we are all so worried,' she texted. 'Even the grandkids. We are all so worried about you.' Ms McKelvie explained that the situation was particularly stressful because her mother suffers seizures and has vascular dementia. 'She has had some ongoing health issues for a while now and all of this has really taken its toll on her, poor thing,' she said. 'We have had to have her checked out at the medical centre. And now I'm just not too sure what will happen next for them. 'Dad just doesn't want to be without mum. I want to take them somewhere if I can - I'd love to be able to do that.'