Team SAGE seeks participants for Alzheimer’s walk

Jennifer Kirkland, whose great-grandfather, Earl Henderson, also had Alzheimer’s, is in her first year as a volunteer with the walk, set for Saturday at Atlantic Station. Her mother, Ellen Blanton, 72, who lives in Fayetteville, North Carolina, was diagnosed with the onset of Alzheimer’s in 2012.

The Alzheimer’s Association Walk to End Alzheimer’s is the world’s largest event to raise awareness and funds for Alzheimer care, support and research.

Fueled by an invigorating end-of-summer breeze and a palpable sense of objective, almost 1,000 people last weekend participated in the two-mile Walk to End Alzheimer’s at Flushing Meadows Corona Park.

During the Walk opening activities, participants will be asked to choose a Promise Flower with a color representing their reason for walking.

The donation goal for this event is $100,000, and monies raised will be used to help educate and support families of Alzheimer’s victims.

“The EUREKA Act would spark smart public-private partnerships to leverage America’s best minds with the great work at NIH in a fiscally responsible manner”, said George Vradenburg, Founder and Chairman of UsAgainstAlzheimer’s.

Gardiner, who was 20 years old when her grandfather died, said she wishes she knew about the Alzheimer’s Association NYC Chapter earlier.

“I want to raise awareness”, she said.

Of course, more than 200 would be a very welcome sight, with statistics revealing that more than 200,000 Ohioans are affected by the disease that has no cure – so far.

“We just lost my aunt sweet Caroline”, Butler said.

“We all have the hope that there’s something down the line from here”, she said. “These walks support essential funding needed to give scientists and researchers the chance to succeed”, she adds.

“The community of Space Coast does an outstanding job raising funds, volunteering their time and building a vibrant, passionate crowd of Walk Teams”, says Alzheimer’s Association Assistant Director of Community Outreach, Tanya Thompson.

Alzheimer’s is a progressive brain disease that gradually destroys memory and other mental functions. The event calls on participants of all ages and abilities to reclaim the future for millions and raise money to find a cure for the nation’s sixth-leading cause of death.

“The Alzheimer’s Association is grateful for UnitedHealthcare’s statewide sponsorship”, said Alexis Eaton, chief development officer of Alzheimer’s Association Houston & Southeast Texas Chapter.