My Nonprofit Reviews

My grandfather was the most brilliant man I ever knew. Sure, everyone says that, and everyone believes it, but I think my Papa had a strong case. He built houses and cars. He was the Head of Design Staff at GM. He was a Naval Aviator. He held multiple college degrees. If there was a problem, he was the guy you wanted to fix it. If he didn't have the solution, he could damn sure build one.

Which made it all the more painful to see Alzheimer's disease take it all away. It started innocuously enough ' forgetting a detail here, retelling a story there. It was easy to write off as old age, even for someone as sharp as he was. But then the big things began to disappear. Names. Places. Faces. Relationships. Nothing can prepare you for the experience of a loved one forgetting who you are ' or forgetting who they are.

Back then, my family didn't know much about Alzheimer's disease. We didn't know about the Alzheimer's Association. But we were lucky to have a supportive family who could help my grandmother provide care. Many don't have that luxury. That's why the care, support, research, and education programs of the Alzheimer's Association are so important. With their help, no family has to face this disease alone. That's why we work so hard to support their efforts.

Because Alzheimer's disease is the 6th leading cause of death in the United States. Because every 68 seconds someone else is diagnosed with Alzheimer's disease. Because there is currently no cure or prevention for Alzheimer's disease. Because, shockingly, only 45% of people with Alzheimer's disease or their caregivers report being told of their diagnosis.

After my Grandfather passed in 2005, my family began to participate in Alzheimer's Association fundraisers. We have joined in their fundraiser walks for 10 years, raising more than $30,000 in two states as a family since getting involved in 2005. This money helps fund groundbreaking research in prevention, treatments, and cures, care & support programs for people with Alzheimer's and their caregivers, and educational resources that can make the diagnosis and caregiving processes less frightening for those who go through them.

In 2013, I took the next step in supporting the Alzheimer's Association, by helping found the Young Professional Alzheimer's Advocates of Lansing (YPAAL), a group of young people dedicated to serving our community by raising awareness and providing support for Alzheimer's Association programs, services, events, and families affected by this disease. In the nearly four years that YPAAL has existed, we have raised over $50,000 for the Alzheimer's Association and performed more than 175 hours of volunteer service to the community. And we're just getting started.

Some wonder why young people would commit their time, energy, and passion so fully to curing a disease commonly thought of as a problem for seniors. But if you take the time to speak to our members, you will understand. We know how devastating this disease is. We know how important these resources are. I urge you to join us in this cause as we do everything we can to end Alzheimer's once and for all.

Toward the Vision of a World Without Alzheimer's

My grandfather was the most brilliant man I ever knew. Sure, everyone says that about their grandfather, and everyone believes it. But I think my Papa had a pretty strong case. He built houses. He built cars. He was the Head of Design Staff at GM. He was a Naval Aviator. He held multiple college degrees. If there was ever a problem, he was the guy you wanted to fix it. If he didn’t have the solution, he could damn sure build one.

Which made it all the more painful to see Alzheimer’s disease take it all away. It started innocuously enough – forgetting a detail here, retelling a story there. It was easy to write off as old age, even for someone as sharp as he was. But then the big things began to disappear. Names. Places. Faces. Relationships. Nothing can prepare you for the experience of a loved one forgetting who you are – or forgetting who they are.

Back then, my family didn’t know much about Alzheimer’s disease. We didn’t know about the Alzheimer’s Association. But we were lucky to have a supportive family who could help my grandmother provide care. Many don’t have that luxury. That’s why the care, support, research, and education programs of the Alzheimer’s Association are so important. With their help, no family has to face this terrible disease alone. And that’s why we work so hard to support their efforts.

Because Alzheimer’s disease is the 6th leading cause of death in the United States. Because every 68 seconds someone else is diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease. Because there is currently no cure or prevention for Alzheimer’s disease. Because, shockingly, only 45% of people with Alzheimer’s disease or their caregivers report being told their diagnosis.

After my Grandfather passed, my family began to participate in Alzheimer’s Association fundraisers. We have joined in their fundraiser walks for 10 years, raising and donating nearly $25,000 in two states as a family since our first in 2005. For two years, we organized our own charity golf tournament, raising an additional $5,000. This money helps fund groundbreaking research for prevention, treatments, and cures, care and support programs for people with Alzheimer’s and their caregivers, and educational resources that can make the diagnosis and caregiving processes less frightening for those who go through them.

In 2013, I was able to take the next step in supporting the Alzheimer’s Association, by helping found the Young Professional Alzheimer’s Advocates of Lansing (YPAAL), a group of young people dedicated to serving our community by raising awareness and providing support for Alzheimer's Association programs, services, events and families affected by this disease. In the almost three years that YPAAL has existed, we have raised over $15,000 for our chapter of the Alzheimer’s Association and performed more than 150 hours of volunteer service to the community. And we’re just getting started.

Some wonder why young people would commit their time, energy, and passion so fully to this cause. But if you take the time to speak to our members, you will understand. We know how devastating this disease is. We know how important these resources are. I urge you to join us in this cause as we do everything we can to end Alzheimer’s once and for all.

The Alzheimer’s Association’s website is at http://alz.org
The Michigan Great Lakes Chapter of the Alzheimer’s Association is at http://alz.org/mglc/
The Young Professional Alzheimer’s Advocates of Lansing are at http://www.alz.org/mglc/in_my_community_64035.asp