I want to share why I am so passionate about finding ways to cure Alzheimer's and all forms of dementia. Both sides of our family have been affected by Alzheimer's. It is a terrible disease and our family wants to take part in raising awareness and funds for research into potential cures and how to slow the progression of the disease. We also want to help provide support to families who are dealing with loved ones with dementia. 

Beth, my mother, and Jennie, my mother-in-law, were vibrant, healthy, active women with many interests and wide networks of family and friends. They were active in their communities and fully engaged with children and grandchildren. In their 80's, they both began to be plagued by dementia. It was extraordinarily difficult to watch them both slowly deteriorate mentally and physically.

Moreover, they had spouses, my father Carl and father-in-law Cliff, who loved them dearly and took care of them for many years during the long slow progression of the disease. In both instances, these men passed away before my mother and mother-in-law. It is hard to know what kind of a toll caregiving took on the health of Carl and Cliff. 

Alzheimer's is a family disease that affects not just those who get the disease. Everything possible needs to be done to address the Alzheimer's crisis. Thank you so much for being part of the effort to end this disease.