Mrs Potter went missing from her daughter's Carroll St home in Dunedin about noon on Monday, March 30. Police and private searches have since failed to find any trace of the 53-year-old.
And last week an aerial search was carried out from Tunnel Beach to Boulder Beach - a distance of 20km - and the upper Otago Harbour area.
Mr Panirau said some family members were continuing to search for Mrs Potter but others had had to return to work.
Family members had recently been wondering ''how we can ever thank'' all the people who had helped, including people who had spent hours searching for Mrs Potter even though they did not know her.
And a couple of grocery firms had provided water and muesli bars to support the searchers, he said.
The family wanted to thank everyone for their help.
The search was continuing, and members of the public with information which could help were asked to contact the police, he said.
Senior Sergeant Shona Low, of the Southern District Command Centre, said a lot of public support had been provided, and she praised that ''good'' response.
Police were continuing to look for Mrs Potter and were following up information provided by the public, Snr Sgt Low said.
Mrs Potter was last seen wearing dark blue denim jeans, a two toned black and grey long sleeved three quarter buttoned shirt with white cuffs, and no footwear.
She is described as slim with light brown, collar length hair.
Anyone who might have seen Mrs Potter, or knew where she was, was asked to contact Dunedin police on (03) 471 4800.
