I was quite attached to my grandfather as a youngster. If he was mowing the lawn with his reel mower, I was behind him with my Fisher-Price lawn mower. If he was digging with a shovel, I had a spade digging nearby. My grandparents took care of me while my mom worked, and we shared much of my pre-K days together. My grandpa passed when I was just 7, my grandma when I was 16. Neither of them was diagnosed with Alzheimer's, but it lends to the reason I was so drawn to senior living and then became a Walk To End Alzheimer's fundraiser. It began with volunteering as a senior chorus leader of the Colonial Harbor Wanna Bees and blossomed into a career in senior living. I'm now on the Resident Programs team at Brookdale Chambrel and loving the fact that I get to meet some of the very people who helped shape the world in which I live!  I love hearing their stories, and that's why I'm leading the way to Alzheimer's first survivor by participating in the Alzheimer's Association Walk to End Alzheimer's®. Currently, more than 5 million Americans have Alzheimer's, and that number is expected to grow to as many as 16 million by 2050. Our future is at risk unless we can find a way to change the course of this disease.

Together, we can end Alzheimer's disease. Please make a donation to advance the care, support and research efforts of the Alzheimer's Association. 

Thank you for joining the fight against Alzheimer's!