The Prince Albert Walk for Alzheimer’s returned to Kinsmen Park on Saturday afternoon for the second year.
Traditionally, the event has been held in January at the Alfred Jenkins Fieldhouse, but for the second straight year, organizers chose to host it outdoors in the spring.
Laura Erickson-Lumb, the first link coordinator with the Alzheimer’s Society of Saskatchewan in Prince Albert, said they expected around 50 walkers for the afternoon. She said the change in format has helped attract more participants.
“For one thing, the weather is always better in May than it is in January,” she said.
The walk’s goal is to fundraise, but according to Erickson, it is more about awareness. She said one Alzheimer’s diagnosis can impact multiple people.
“The ripple effect is phenomenal. If the person with Alzheimer’s is part of a family and a community and often at jobs. Friends (and) all of those people are affected as well,” she said.
Erickson-Lumb said it was nice to see younger walkers taking part in the event. Having more people from more demographics participate will make it easier to get the conversation going.
“The biggest part of (creating) awareness is to just have people start talking about Alzheimer’s disease, releasing some of the stigma that’s involved,” she explained. “Nobody wants to talk about Alzheimer’s. It’s not very glamorous to think that you lose yourself a little
bit at a time.”
An Alzheimer’s diagnosis affects not only the person diagnosed but the family and the community.
Before the walk began there were speeches by Erickson, Rupert Bremner of IG Wealth Management, who sponsored the walk, and Dave Leaderhouse discussing why he walks and how an Alzheimer’s diagnosis for a friend who recently passed away affected his life.
The walkers were also led in a stretching exercise as part of the opening ceremony.
There was also a moment of silence before the walk officially began after everyone lined up.
The Malcolm Jenkins Family Foundation matched funds up to $25,000. According to organizers, the walk raised $19,247.79.
The goal for all the walks taking place across Saskatchewan is to raise a combined $200,000.
“We are seeing a large increase in Alzheimer’s disease and related dementia,” EricksonLumb explained. “It’s also affecting people younger and younger all the time. You can live well with dementia, but you can’t live well if you don’t know what it is.”
She described the matching of funds by Jenkins as phenomenal.
“Every cent that’s donated and raised goes towards programming and services for folks with Alzheimer’s,” Erickson-Lumb said.
michael.oleksyn@paherald.sk.c
