Alzheimer’s Assoc. kicks off 2013 fundraisers
Jennifer Lepard, new CEO for the Greater Michigan Chapter of the Alzheimer’s Association will be helping to kick off the 2013 Walk to End Alzheimer’s Season at the Walk kickoff event on July 24th, from 5-7 p.m. at the Marquette Commons.
Lepard, a native Michigander, has more than 25 years in nonprofit management including Chief Operating Officer of the Wayne Metropolitan Community Action Agency in Wyandotte, and as an Executive Director of Action to Rehabilitate Community Housing, an agency providing community-based social services in a challenged area of Washington, D.C.
“I am thrilled to be part of an organization that is so focused on both research and services to those in the community that need them now. I look forward to working with the tremendously dedicated staff and volunteers that have made the organization such a success to date.”
“With aging baby boomers and the nation facing unprecedented economic challenges, it is more important than ever for America to deal with the Alzheimer’s crisis,” said Lepard. “The impact of Alzheimer’s on Michigan cannot be underestimated, with as many as 180,000 living with the disease now, and an estimated 500,000+ caregivers providing almost 7 billion dollars of unpaid care a year; it is clear every effort must be made to address Alzheimer’s disease today.”
The Kickoff Event is an annual event to allow Walkers and Teams to pick up fundraising materials, talk with staff and committee members to get fund raising ideas and for people new to the Walk, learn more about how they can help support programs and services for people living with Alzheimer’s in the Upper Peninsula.
- According to the Alzheimer’s Association report, there are 5.4 million Americans living with Alzheimer’s disease, including 5.2 million people age 65 or older and 200,000 people under the age of 65. In the Upper Peninsula, approximately 9,000 people are living with the disease.
- Every 68 seconds someone in America develops Alzheimer’s, and after the age of 65, 1 in 8 people has Alzheimer’s Disease, doubling every 10 years until after 85, when 1 in 2 people in our country has Alzheimer’s Disease.
- Caregivers take on a tremendous financial, physical and emotional toll to help care for a loved one with Alzheimer’s. Sixty-one percent of family caregivers of people with Alzheimer’s and other dementias rated their emotional stress of caregiving as high or very high.
You can find out more about the U.P. Alzheimer’s Association walks by calling (906) 228-3910.