TUCSON, Ariz. (KGUN) — On a crisp autumn morning, thousands of walkers converged in Reid Park for the annual Walk to End Alzheimer’s fundraiser, supporting the mission of the Alzheimer’s Association. The event, held Saturday, Oct. 25 in midtown, aimed to rally members of the community around the goal of ending Alzheimer’s and other dementias.
“Because you walk we are closer than ever to a world without Alzheimer’s and other dementia” said Pat Parris, KGUN9 anchor and host of Walk to End Alzheimer's. “We’re working to bring treatments home to Tucson and Southern Arizona — because we walk!”
U.S. Rep. Juan Ciscomani, whose congressional district includes parts of southern Arizona and who sits on the Appropriations Committee, attended the walk to lend his support. “My role as a legislator and an appropriator is to make sure we have the proper funding to keep the research and make sure that we beat this disease,” Ciscomani said.
He also stressed the importance of bipartisanship in advancing Alzheimer’s research. “Let’s work together," he said, when asked about the current government shutdown. "We have to be on a bi-partisan basis so that we can get solutions through and actually work for the people that put us in office.”
Among the participants walking Saturday was Sharen Carson, one of an estimated 7 million Americans living with Alzheimer’s, who took part in the walk despite her diagnosis. “It has sucked,” she said candidly. “But I’m happy to see people out here, I’m proud that I can still be a part of it.”
Event co-chair Ernesto Duran emphasized the progress being made locally, and was blown away by the event's turnout. “We always shoot for the stars and it appears we hit the stars this time. It’s awesome to see… we’re getting closer and closer to a cure.”
The Alzheimer’s Association, founded in 1980, describes the Walk to End Alzheimer’s as its largest fundraising event nationwide, mobilizing chapters in more than 600 communities. In the Desert Southwest chapter of Arizona — serving Tucson and surrounding regions — the nonprofit reports more than 120,000 individuals are living with Alzheimer’s, and some 350,000 family care partners are affected.
The walk offered 1-mile and 3-mile options, and encouraged participants to raise funds for research, care and support services. For many attendees, the event provided not only a physical activity but a poignant expression of solidarity in the fight against a disease that impacts individuals, families and communities alike.
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Eddie Celaya is a multimedia journalist at KGUN 9. Born in Tucson and raised in the Phoenix area, Eddie is a life-long Arizonan and graduate of the University of Arizona who loves the desert and mountains and hates the cold. Previously, Eddie worked in print media at the Arizona Daily Star. Share your story ideas with Eddie at edward.celaya@kgun9.com, or by connecting on Facebook or Instagram.
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