The local edition Walk to End Alzheimer’s will make its way to Cambridge, Mass., on Sept. 23. The walk is held annually in more than 600 communities nationwide and is run by the Alzheimer’s Association. The walk will take place nationwide, but the jaunt through Boston’s nearest neighboring city will be the one closest to Boston College.
Begun in 1989 as The Memory Walk, the mission of the association is to provide care, support, and research across the world. By participating in the walk in Cambridge, the local chapter of the Alzheimer’s Association can work to aid those affected by the disease in Greater Boston.
“Thanks to our Walk to End Alzheimer’s participants, individuals and families in our communities affected by Alzheimer’s can continue to receive critical care and support they need at no cost,” Jayne Paragona, vice president of development for the Alzheimer’s Association, Massachusetts/New Hampshire Chapter, said in a press release.
“This event helps us continue to be a leader in providing help and hope [to] everyone impacted by this disease while advancing critical research to help us reach our vision of a world without Alzheimer’s.”
According to the release, half a million people participate in the walk every year. Locally, the disease affects many residents.
“In the United States someone develops Alzheimer’s every 65 seconds,” the release reads. “In Massachusetts alone, 130,000 people suffer from the disease and there are over 337,000 caregivers.”
Walkers don’t have to pay a fee when they register to walk, but the association encourages participants to fundraise once they decide to participate.
Featured Image Courtesy of Wikimedia Commons
