Alzheimer’s Memory Walk
I have been fortunate enough not to have to see a family member suffer from Alzheimer’s disease. But I worked in a nursing home for a short time, and spent a large portion of that time on the Alzheimer’s unit. The heartbreak of what I saw there every day was part of the reason that I didn’t stay very long. Some days I would leave in tears.
The patients occasionally made me laugh, like one guy who would play an invisible accordion. His niece also worked there, and she said he had been a gifted musician before he got Alzheimer’s. He spent his days wandering through the halls, as did many of the others who were able.
Some of the patients were violent, but I was working in a capacity where I was able to keep my distance from them. I could understand why they would be that way, though. If my normal surroundings suddenly seemed foreign to me, and then I was placed somewhere that I really had never been, I suppose I might be a bit combative as well.
The Alzheimer’s Association is currently holding memory walks in cities all over the United States. There’s one in Christiansburg in October, and I’m thinking about attending. It would be great to be a Team Captain and get together a whole group of people to walk. I’m not sure if I will have time or not, but it would definitely be a worthy cause.
If Alzheimer’s has touched you, whether through a family member or someone else you know, you can help by participating in the Memory Walk. You can find a location near you at the Alzheimer’s Association website. Sign up early so you can raise lots of money for the cause.
