Memory Walk 2010

Yesterday was the much anticipated Memory Walk in Huntington Beach! We raised $2100 which turned out to be close to 1% of the total fund-raised amount for the entire walk! Not bad for our first time! There were nine of us total including Colby and Rich, Matt and Blair, and then of course Blake, Tony, Megan, Mom, Me, and then 2500 other walkers.

I'm kind of crazy and spent almost 3 hours making a poster for the walk. (There was a poster contest and I still don't know who won, but it should have been us!) And, no, I don't have that much time on my hands, and it's one of the reasons I'm still so tired from the last few days.

What made the poster more special was in the inclusion of names that our friends and family donated in memory or honor of. Over the past three months, I didn't feel too annoying asking for donations because half of the donations weren't made for just my family... half of the donations were from people who have a loved one with Alzheimer's. I say it every time, but I'm always surprised at how many people are affected by this disease. So, we didn't just walk for my Dad and for our future, but we also walked for....
Lucy Mitchell, Faye Taylor, Ruth Sciumbato, Sophie Barnes, Gail McGinty, May Henderson, Jim Richardson, Ada Henderson, Bob Henderson, Katsuko Elegino, Richard D. Meriwether, Grandma G., Vincente Miramontes, Harry Manning, Karen Herschberger, Mary Gilligan and more.


I've felt so empowered the last few months fund-raising and being a part of the Alzheimer's community, and now it's over until next year. (Although, that's not true at all.) Megan and I are definitely still involved with everything to do with Alzheimer's because of good old Dad and I have to say I've become quite passionate about the cause if you haven't guessed by now. The numbers and statistics don't lie and researchers are struggling to find which route to take in finding a cure because of recent set-backs (although there have been break-throughs on diagnoses of the disease). I really think we're going to be seeing and hearing a lot more about Alzheimer's in the media in the next few years; in fact it's already starting.

Again, I want to thank everyone for their support and for making us feel less powerless about this disease. I also want to thank my friends who walked with us. Who knew a bunch of twenty-somethings would care enough to be walking in an Alzheimer's walk. We hope next year's group can be even bigger!