The Permian Basin’s Walk to End Alzheimer’s is coming up Oct. 26.
The event opens at 9 a.m. at Scharbauer Sports Complex-Coterra Pavilion, 5514 Champions Drive, in Midland. The opening ceremony is at 10 a.m. and the walk starts at 10:30 a.m.
Julie Gray, director of Development for the Alzheimer’s Association, said it could draw as many as 600 people. The walk, which has a theme of Scare Away Alzheimer’s, will go on rain or shine. It is free to attend.
The route is about a mile, but there is a shorter route of a half-mile that is available to participants. There will be refreshments, water, a photo area, interactive activities, vendors, a kids’ zone, pet areas, therapy dogs, a few mascots and the Promise Garden.
“We have flowers, and each of the flower colors represent a different connection to the disease. We ask all of our participants when they get there to add a tribute to the wall, or tell us why they’re walking, who are they walking for but then pick up your Promise Garden flower and bring it to the ceremony so that it’s used in our ceremony itself,” Gray said.
The orange flower shows you support the association’s vision of a world with no Alzheimer’s and all other dementia. Purple means you’ve lost someone to the disease. Yellow is for caregivers and blue means you’re living with the disease. There is a white flower that symbolizes the hope for a cure and represents the first survivor.
Each year, they have an exclusive T-shirt that participants earn when they raise or donate $100. The shirts are mailed directly to the participants. There will be a few extra shirts on site if people want to donate that morning.
Donations will be accepted that morning in cash, check, credit card, mobile wallet or through the association website.
T-shirts from last year will be available on-site.
“I’ve got several different shirt options for people that (they’ll) be able to pick up on site, as well as flower pins and tribute signs,” Gray said.
All funds raised through Walk to End Alzheimer’s further the care, support and research efforts of the nonprofit Alzheimer’s Association. All donations are tax-deductible as allowed by law, the association’s website said.
The walk brings the community together to share local resources, information about the association, things it is doing, and sharing the message that no one fights alone, Gray said.
Gray has been on the association staff for a little more than five years. Before that, she was a volunteer.
Educating people about the disease has become a passion for her. Gray’s grandmother had Alzheimer’s and lived with the disease for almost 20 years. Someone shared the 800 helpline with her many years ago and she called to get some help and the organization helped Gray and her mother plan the care for her grandmother, figure out next steps and get education on it.
“As the disease progressed and the situation changed, I just continued to call back to get the education, the support, all of the resources that we needed as a family … The last five or six years of my grandmother’s life, that’s when I started to give back to the Association and started as an advocate, and then helping plan our Walk to End Alzheimer’s. After she passed away, I thought, I need to do more … There was a job that came open, and I closed my business and went to work for the association,” Gray recalled.
She worked in insurance for a little over 10 years previously.
“This became such a passion and a calling,” Gray said.
She saw the need in the community for additional awareness about what the Alzheimer’s Association is. The services it provides are free. The 800 helpline is available 24/7 and the website has information, education programs, online support groups and a local resource finder that they do in conjunction with the AARP.
Gray said there is a free online ALZ navigator, which helps families who may not live in the same area but want to help on the caregiving journey. You can create an account to house all the information in one location for the family.
You don’t have to be a particular age for Alzheimer’s to strike.
“We’re actually now seeing more and more individuals diagnosed at a much earlier age, even as early as their 40s … Testing has come so far along than what it was 10 or 15 years ago. That’s part of it, but also the awareness of what those warning signs are,” Gray said.
They also provide information on how to reduce the risk of developing cognitive decline.
“We say to people … what’s good for your heart is good for your brain. … Your diet, your exercise; even walking … as little as 5, 10 minutes a day, or if you’re able to park a little bit further out and get those few extra steps to stay active. To be socially engaged is a big one as well. But challenge your brain. Maybe you’ve never played chess and you want to play chess, or maybe learn a new language,” Gray said.
She encouraged people to come out and join the walk.
“Come join us. That’s a big thing. We’re really trying to get that word out to come join us, be a part of the movement to end Alzheimer’s and all other dementia,” Gray said.
If you go
- What: Permian Basin’s Walk to End Alzheimer’s.
- When: Saturday, Oct. 26. Event opens at 9 a.m. Opening ceremony is at 10 a.m. and the walk starts at 10:30 a.m.
- Where: Scharbauer Sports Complex-Coterra Pavilion, 5514 Champions Drive, in Midland.
