Posted 3/24/21
When you lie down, you will not be afraid;
when you lie down, your sleep will be sweet.
Have no fear of sudden disaster
or of the ruin that overtakes the wicked,
for the Lord will be at your side
and will keep your foot from being snared. Proverbs 3:24-26
Hi all! I hope you are having a Happy Hump Day! All is well here. 🙂 Today on “Who, What, Where, Why, When-sday” (the weekly feature through which I point folks to things they can do to help with dementia one way or another) I want to point you somewhere a tad different. We will resume the multi-W‘ed format next week, but I was thinking today to my self: “Self, if I wanted to help but needed a jumping off place, where would I go? I mean, self, if I have nothing specific, but a desire to help, what should I do?” Yes, self-talk is a thing and isn’t always a bad thing, all jokes aside. I found this link as a conclusion:
https://www.alz.org/get_involved
Included in this link are the following great options:
- Donate– This one is easy enough. It doesn’t take a rocket surgeon nor a brain scientist to figure this one out…it takes money for us to find a cure and to help the millions of suffering folks.
- Participate in an Event– this link takes you to the four biggies as far as fundraising events at the Alzheimer’s Association: The Walk to End Alzheimer’s; The Longest Day; RIVALZ; and Ride to End ALZ. I have talked about the first two of these extensively and will continue to do so. My Runnin’ Til I’m Purple run is part of the Longest Day. (See how I shamelessly put in my fundraising link there? Pretty sneaky. 😉 ) But you also need to know about these other two event categories. RIVALZ is way cool. It is a female flag football event (men can coach or volunteer in other capacities) and there are teams all over the place. It is intense and raises a lot of money in the process. The Ride to End Alz is a bicycle enthusiast’s fundraiser dream. You simply pledge, raise some money, and ride. There are specific events planned or you can arrange your own event, either individually or in a group. It doesn’t matter how advanced you are in cycling…just do what you can, and do it safely.
- Advocate– The advocate button takes you to advocacy options for you to consider including AIM that I referred to in last week’s Wednesday episode found here. Advocacy isn’t for everyone, I suppose, but it is for more people than currently realize it. More often than not, all that is needed is you to share your story with a person or a small group of people.
- Volunteer– Every non-profit worth supporting is prudent (financially) and many expand their reach through the use of volunteers. The Association, and my employer SeniorAge, deploys these mission-minded wonders. You can be of assistance in your free time with a local field office or in a host of other ways.
- Tribute page– Tribute pages are a great way to both honor your loved one and to raise money for a cure. Take a look around and you will be amazed.
- Find Events Near You– This wonderful tool has all sorts of opportunities to find events coming soon. You can hone down the list by geography as well.
- Learn about Planned Giving– This page shows various ways to utilize planned giving/estates to help those suffering and their caregivers. There are few better ways to advance a legacy and to make lemonade out of lemons than to pay it forward in this way…to eventually have a world without dementia!
- Shop for a Cause– This is the merchandise store to help you promote events and show your support. It is also a fundraiser for the Association and is very worth your time and money. Don’t believe me? The very socks I am wearing as I type came from the store:
Note: my picture doesn’t make the stripes look as purple as they actually are…
- Explore Other Ways to Give– Several nifty options in this catch-all link. 🙂
- Don’t forget to scroll down and notice the partners and sponsors. Buy stuff from them if they sell stuff. Be their customer. Join their ranks. They are mission-minded and are already doing amazing things!!! Heck, are you a business owner or manager? Maybe you can join their ranks as well?!?! 🙂
Can I bottom line it for you? There are lots and lots options for athletes, for servants at heart, for professionals of every stripe, and for your average Joe like me…and you. Like a Swiss Army Knife, you have all sorts of options as do I. 🙂 Thank you for joining me in helping however we can. I hate this mess. I want a cure so that the collective talents and skills represented by the above pages can move on to another cause. Yes, I want a cure to put my friends and myself out of business. 🙂 Pray for a cure and do whatever else you can and feel led to do. Oh, for the day we finally #EndALZ !
Update- Finally get to visit mom tomorrow, Lord willin’. I will update you soon on how she is. I so look forward to getting to visit some of my friends in the memory unit although I expect that many are gone/have long forgotten me after over 370 days without being there. However, the great and terrible thing about this sadness is there is a whole new group of new friends waiting there for me and for you. I hate this disease and I am sure you feel the same…
Runnin’ Til I’m Purple– I had a good WW week this meeting. I am 99 pounds lost in their system and right at 110 total (I had lost a little before I rejoined). This morning I ran 10 miles on the dreadmill. It only lets you run for an hour per session, so I did 2 sessions. I only run at a pace of between 4.5-5 miles per hour, so I am not setting any speed records, but be kind…I am still 250 pounds. I am working on my weight and my speed. I also know that sustaining those speeds, as slothesque as they are, will not happen for 37.6 miles. I will shoot for 4MPH, which will still be a 9-10 hour run. I was built better for 9-10 hours of watching Netflix while I eat Guy’s BBQ potato chips….but we need a stinkin’ cure and we need it now. 😉
Thank you all! Returning to my normal format Friday. 🙂