I'm walking in rememberance of someone special.
I’ll never forget the day I got that phone call from my mom. I had just finished bathing my toddler sons and was getting them ready for bed when she told me that our former neighbor, Ed, had found my grandfather two miles from home. He was standing outside a boarded-up church, banging on the door. It was just after work for Ed, just before dark.
That boarded-up church had once been my grandfather’s elementary school. When Ed asked him what he was doing there, he simply replied, “I’m late for school.”
My grandfather—my Pap—was in his 70s. He was a kind, reliable, family-oriented man who loved baseball, his neighborhood, and his country. He spent 25 years delivering mail as a U.S. postman, coached baseball, raised three children, buried a son who died in Vietnam, built the house I live in today, and stayed devoted to his wife until the day she died.
We wanted to believe his confusion that night was just a side effect of medication, but deep down, we knew the truth. Within a week, he was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s.
We lost Pap within three years. The disease took so much from him and us. The heartbreak of watching him slowly disappear is something I will never forget.
That’s why I’ll be wearing purple on October 18th and why I’m honored to serve as the Honorary Executive Chair for this year’s Walk to End Alzheimer’s in Pittsburgh, PA.
This year, I’m more hopeful than ever. Groundbreaking research is happening right here at the University of Pittsburgh. New medications, early screening tools, and advancements in treatment mean that families today have options my grandfather never had. We are closer than ever to a world without Alzheimer’s and other dementias.
I invite you to join me in this fight. Let’s raise money, spread awareness, and work toward ending the suffering of so many families.
Will you walk with me?
My Progress
Thank you for helping advance Alzheimer's support, care and research.
4007.5
I have raised
5000
My Goal
My Video
My Achievements
Self-Donor
Emailer
Fundraiser
Top Team
Top Fundraiser
T-shirt
Champion
Grand Champion
Elite Grand Champion
Storyteller
Facebook Fundraiser
10 DONATIONS



