Submitted by Jim Gall, Midland Walk to End Alzheimer’s Chair and
Breanna Theisen, Development Manager at Alzheimer’s Association Michigan Chapter
Chances are, Alzheimer’s or one of the many forms of dementia, have impacted someone you know. It’s estimated that dementia impacts about one in eight people aged 65 and nearly 50% of those reaching 85 years of age. In fact, over 200,000 people in Michigan have been diagnosed with Alzheimer’s and are cared for by over 330,000 unpaid (family & friend) caregivers.
“Alzheimer’s impacts not only those that have the disease, but also their family and friends” added Jim Gall, owner of Right at Home, and this year’s Midland Walk to End Alzheimer’s’ Chair. “I’ve personally experienced this with my family and with the many families we have helped over the last 11 years. “Caregiving for someone with this disease can cause a tremendous strain and families need help.”
Fortunately, the Alzheimer’s Association is there to help those with the disease and their caregivers with education and information, support programs and to also fund critical research to slow, stop and one day even cure this dreadful disease. To do this, a primary fundraising activity of the Alzheimer’s Association is the Walk to End Alzheimer’s. Midland has hosted a Walk to End Alzheimer’s for nearly 20 years and has raised hundreds of thousands of dollars!
This year’s walk will be on Saturday, October 14th and once again located at The Dow Diamond. Registration starts at 9 am and the opening ceremony will be at 10 am. The route will start at the Dow Diamond, going along the river to the Tridge, up to Main Street and back to Dow Diamond.
Whether you want to actually walk or not, we’d love to see you join the fight to help us create a world without Alzheimer’s! Please reach out Breanna Theisen, Development Manager at bjtheisen@alz.org or register yourself or a team at www.alz.org/walk.
