Walk to End Alzheimer’s returns to Wild Things Park
Paul Paterra/Observer-Reporter
Mary Lynn Spilak and Bracken Burns are co-chairs for the 2021 Walk to End Alzheimer’s in Washington County, scheduled for Saturday at Wild Things Park.
Participants in a past Walk to End Alzheimer's carry their Promise Garden flowers. Each color flower has a different designation.
The Walk to End Alzheimer's typically draws a large crowd to Wild Things Park.
People with a connection to someone afflicted with Alzheimer's usually make up the majority of the crowd at the annual Walk to End Alzheimer's.
Submitted photo
Participants take a lap around Wild Things Park at the annual Walk to End Alzheimer’s in October.
The Walk to End Alzheimer’s returns to Wild Things Park Saturday.
The 2020 walk had to be held virtually due to the COVID-19 pandemic, but the 2021 walk is back at the field at 1 Washington Federal Way. Registration is scheduled for 8 a.m. with the ceremony to follow at 9 a.m.
“We had to make some alterations to make sure we could have this event,” explained Lynzy Groves, manager of the Walk to End Alzheimer’s. “Our top priority was to make sure we could all get together again.”
In 2000, representatives of the Area Agency on Aging and Aging Services of Washington County came up with the idea of a walk to benefit the Alzheimer’s Association.
“No other disease affects older adults and their families like Alzheimer’s,” said Mary Lynn Spilak, director of Aging Services of Washington County, who has served as chair or co-chair of the walk since its inception. “The devastation of this disease can last for many years. It’s brutal and it’s very hard on caregivers.”
Alzheimer’s disease is the most common type of dementia. It is a progressive disease beginning with mild memory loss and possibly leading to the loss of the ability to carry on a conversation and respond to the environment. Alzheimer’s disease involves parts of the brain that control thought, memory and language. One in 5 people will develop Alzheimer’s.
According to data provided by the Alzheimer’s Association, the disease is the sixth leading cause of death and kills more people than breast cancer and prostate cancer combined. More than 6 million Americans are living with Alzheimer’s and the cost of caring for those and people with other dementia is estimated to total $355 billion in 2021.
In Pennsylvania, there are more than 280,000 people afflicted with the disease and about 500,000 caregivers. The total value of unpaid care in the Commonwealth is $9.726 million.
The Alzheimer’s Association actively serves about 110 families in Washington County.
“We need more people to know that we have services we can provide them,” Groves said. “It’s a very expensive disease to fight and it’s a very emotionally expensive disease to fight. It takes its toll. We want to make sure we can do something about it and this is the best outlet.”
The Walk to End Alzheimer’s is the world’s largest fundraiser for Alzheimer’s care, support and research. All of the money raised goes directly to the Alzheimer’s Association. During the 21 years of the event, more than $1 million has been raised in the fight to end Alzheimer’s.
“It has gotten larger and larger,” Spilak said. “It started with about 100 people. Now there’s about 400 to 500 people that come. The committee is awesome. Many of the committee members have been with us for 21 years. We have a lot of dedicated volunteers from Aging Services that have been with us since we started. We’re all very dedicated to end this fight.”
Sponsors of the walk will have tables on location Saturday. There also will be basket raffles and opportunities to learn more about the Alzheimer’s Association and its advocacy programs.
Registered participants will receive Promise Garden flowers. Each color of a flower has a different designation.
- Blue represents someone living with Alzheimer’s or another dementia.
- Purple is for those who have lost someone to the disease.
- Yellow represents someone who is currently supporting or caring for someone living with Alzheimer’s.
- Orange is for those who support the cause and the association’s vision of a world without Alzheimer’s and other dementia.
“Flowers are incredibly strong. When we see those flowers, we know there’s hope,” Groves said. “Unfortunately, purple is the most (prevalent) color.”
There also will be a white flower at the ceremony, which is symbolic of the first survivor.
“We want to plant that in our promise garden someday,” Groves said of the white flower.
Walks to End Alzheimer’s are held annually in more than 600 communities nationwide. There are five scheduled in Southwestern Pennsylvania in 2021. Walks have already taken place this year in Beaver and Butler County. There also is one scheduled Saturday at Twin Lakes Park in Latrobe and another set for Oct. 16 at Highmark Stadium in Pittsburgh.
For Co-Chair Bracken Burns, there is a personal connection. His mother, Jane Burns, died April 24, 1994, from the disease at age 78. He was his mother’s primary caregiver.
“It’s terrible. You watch the person disappear before your very eyes,” Burns said. “She was a classy woman who was very proper about how she interacted with people. Suddenly, she was wandering around town walking up to total strangers telling them personal stuff they didn’t want to know and she didn’t want to tell them. That’s what brings us all together. Everybody has that story.”
Burns will be among those taking the lap at Wild Things Park Saturday.
“It’s emotional,” he said. “We spend a year planning this. There’s many parts to this and it sort of culminates with this one or two laps you take. You can see the look on people’s faces that this is a significant moment.”
A goal was set to reach $62,000 this year. As of Tuesday morning, $43,682 had been raised. There were 179 folks registered to participate at that time, as well as 40 teams.
Registrations still are being accepted at act.alz.org/washington2021/.
Of course, the ultimate goal is a world without Alzheimer’s disease.
“We want put out of jobs,” Groves said about employees of the Alzheimer’s Association. “It’s the best way to lose our jobs.”