Play Ball and End Alz!

June is Alzheimer's and Brain Awareness Month! (This basically means I have been wearing some form of purple every day so far this month.) It is so important to spread awareness about Alzheimer's Disease - it's the 6th leading cause of death in the US, but it has no treatment and no cure, and it doesn't have nearly the research funding that cancer and heart disease, as well as other leading causes of death, have. Right now, someone in the US develops Alzheimer's every 67 seconds - if we do nothing, it will be every 33 seconds by 2050 (terrifying).

The Alzheimer's Association of Greater Indiana has been sponsoring events all month for ABAM. There are so many ways to participate and raise awareness! There are Dine-to-Donates set up across the state (visit the Noblesville Applebee's on June 24 to support Team Angel! Contact me for the flyer), as well as other events like CruZionsville and the Custom Car Revival in Indianapolis. You can also support your favorite brunette (hey there!) in the 4th Annual Blondes vs. Brunettes game on June 28 at Eli Lilly's Colonel Field. A $20 donation gets you entrance to the game, a free beer at the game, and entrance to the after-game celebration at the downtown Indy Kilroy's. It's going to be an awesome game (and the Brunettes are totally going to kick ass). We're well on our way to raising over $30,000 for Alzheimer's Awareness and Research!

Last night, the Alzheimer's Association sponsored an Alzheimer's Awareness Night at Victory Field for the Indianapolis Indians game versus the Durham Bulls. It was a gorgeous night for a ball game, and the Association had a table set up right at the entrance to Victory Field. They also had a prize wheel, where you could win Walk tattoos and stickers, as well as Walk t-shirts from last year.

Several of my fellow ESA Eta Pi members came to the Indians game! It acted as our June social and a philanthropy event - we were decked out in purple and had great seats on the third base-line. It was awesome to see people that were out in purple - either wearing Walk t-shirts, or Alzheimer's Association gear, or a purple hat or sticker - it showed that there are people in and around Indy that care about ending this disease.

Check out those awesome Eta Pi members!

I know I write a lot about Alzheimer's Disease, and I know I post a lot about it, but it is truly the most heartbreaking and gut-wrenching disease I have ever encountered. I know a lot of facts and figures, but in reality, those facts and figures really don't mean much when your Grandpa can't figure out that you're his granddaughter, or your Granny can't remember the last time you visited her even though it was just a couple days before, or when your loved one tells you to go away and that they never want to see you anymore. Alzheimer's doesn't just rob memories - it changes personalities, too. My Grandpa was always social and never knew a stranger - Alzheimer's turned him in to a quiet, solemn man. My Granny was a fiercely independent and silly woman - Alzheimer's took her independence and stole her silliness. Sometimes, the worst part is that the body carries on just like normal, unaware that the mind is slowly fading away. There's a very real possibility for a person to stay in the final stages for years. 

The mission of ABAM is a simple one: go purple and help us end Alzheimer's Disease. Join or form a Walk team, support BvB, or just wear purple and learn the 10 signs of Alzheimer's. Your brain and your memories matter, and are worth saving. Join the fight today.