I lost my father to Alzheimer's in 2016. My dad, Larry Rollins, was an Army Veteran and small business owner. He was sharp-minded, quick witted, and had a gift for problem solving. The kind of person who does math in his head while others reach for a calculator. He had a dry sense of humor that always made me laugh and the quirky ability to talk like Donald Duck. What began as seemingly insignificant forgetfulness, steadily and mercilessly progressed. He began to struggle with simple daily tasks and even conversations became challenging. I remember him being self-aware at one point and asking if it was going to keep getting worse. Then we watched helplessly as it did. His personality changed until he seemed like a different person. Although he did manage to hang on to his sense of humor and the Donald Duck impression. The disease progressed until eventually he didn't recognize his own family and his body finally surrendered.

After my dad died, I decided I wanted to become involved and help others. I participated in my first fundraising walk in 2017. I continued to be involved and joined the Unifour Walk to End Alzheimer's Event Committee in 2022. I want to do whatever I can to make sure more people don’t have to go through what my dad, and those close to him, went through. Alzheimer’s not only affects the person with the disease, but their families, friends, and everyone around them.

Please consider giving a gift to our walk to support the fight against Alzheimer’s because everyone deserves the chance to survive this terrible disease. No amount is too small, and any gift is a great help to those who are affected by Alzheimer’s.