At last report, North Carolina had about 146,000 confirmed cases of the coronavirus — which might sound bad, until one considers that there are more than 180,000 people living with Alzheimer’s disease in this state.
While a virus pandemic might come and go, Alzheimer’s has been a problem for years and will continue to be in the foreseeable future, with what is now the sixth-leading cause of death in the United States victimizing more families.
It is in that spirit, coupled with a sense of urgency surrounding the disease, that the show will go on this year as far as an annual Walk to End Alzheimer’s in Mount Airy is concerned – on Sept. 12 – despite COVID-19.
Yet instead of hosting a large in-person gathering, the Alzheimer’s Association’s Western North Carolina Chapter is encouraging participants to walk as individuals or in small groups on sidewalks, tracks and trails across Surry County through a “walk is everywhere” model.
With many public events cancelled or postponed so far in 2020 due to the coronavirus, it would have been easy for organizers of the walk to scrap it altogether and add that fundraiser to the growing list.
However, with the ongoing, deadly threat posed by Alzheimer’s disease and the need to find a cure, they decided to maintain the walk as much as possible while recognizing the constraints associated with COVID-19
“Alzheimer’s is not taking a hiatus during COVID-19 and neither are we,” explained Pam Padgett, who is chairing the walk for the third year in a row.
“The pandemic changed many things in our society, but one thing that did not change was the ongoing needs of individuals who suffer from Alzheimer’s and their caregivers’ responsibilities,” she added of the role filled by the walk.
“If anything the pandemic made it much tougher for them than the general population.”
Padgett, who lost her grandmother, Mae Holt, to the disease in 2018, was referencing the 5 million-plus Americans living with Alzheimer’s disease and the more than 16 million family members and friends caring for them.
“The decision to go ahead with the walk was based on their ongoing needs for support and resources, not to mention the need to continue raising money for research.”
In 2019, the Walk to End Alzheimer’s raised more than $67,000 in Surry County, and this year the goal is $78,000, with the local event one of 19 walks planned across North Carolina by the Alzheimer’s Association.
“Virtual platform” planned
The altered format for this year’s walk will involve what Padgett described as a virtual platform.
Normally, a huge crowd gathers at Riverside Park in Mount Airy for a program including speeches by those affected by Alzheimer’s and others, then a walk along the Ararat River Greenway which highlights the unity of those involved in the cause.
Rather than assembling at the park, participants will walk wherever they want on Sept. 12 and post pictures to a Facebook page for the event.
“We will be hosting a virtual main stage platform to allow for opening-ceremony speakers, acknowledgement of sponsors (and more),” related Padgett, who is human resources director for Behavioral Services Inc. in Mount Airy. “It will be exactly like all the walks in the past, but we will just be virtual.”
Along with local speakers, organizers say the walk day opening ceremony will feature a presentation of Promise Flowers to honor the personal reasons participants join together to fight Alzheimer’s and other dementia, all delivered to participants’ smartphones, tablets and computers.
Next, everyone will walk in their own neighborhoods with family and friends. Finally, the Alzheimer’s Association will create an iconic Promise Garden in a “view-only” format that participants can drive by on walk day at Riverside Park to honor all those impacted by the disease.
To enhance the participant experience leading up to the event and on walk day, new features are being added to a Walk to End Alzheimer’s mobile app to create an opportunity for the community to connect, organizers say.
Participants can use the app and a new “Walk Mainstage” to track their steps and distance, follow a virtual walk path, manage Facebook fundraisers and access information and resources from the association and walk sponsors to help individuals and families affected by Alzheimer’s.
A new audio track is also available to encourage participants along the way and to congratulate them upon completion of their walks.
One element that hasn’t changed is the participation of individual teams to generate funds through a variety of ways, typically including such activities as car washes, silent auctions and others. “There’s a lot of creativity there,” Padgett said.
So far 32 teams have been organized, with more than 100 participants involved and $19,348 generated.
Others can sign up as a walker/team captain up to the day of the event, or learn about becoming a sponsor of Walk to End Alzheimer’s-Mount Airy, by visiting act.alz.org/MountAiry or calling 800-272-3900.
Padgett said general donations by those not wishing to walk also can be made at that website.
“A lot of people are afraid to get out and do anything, and that’s why we decided to go the virtual route,” the walk official said.
Source: https://www.mtairynews.com