The Longest Day Tuesday with Christine Warfel

I’ve been asked to share the reason I am passionate about participating in The Longest Day. My immediate response is to say I do it to honor my parents who were both lost to younger onset Alzheimer’s. While that is true, it goes much deeper than that.

Today, there are more than 5 million people throughout this country who have been diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease. Add to that number, approximately 115 million caregivers who give selflessly of themselves while caring for their loved ones. The numbers are staggering, and I want to be an active participant in helping to reduce those numbers and in finding a cure.

In 2015, my team and I did different activities, both indoors and out. It was a fun-filled day and we raised quite a bit of money. We’re talking about doing things a little differently in 2016 by involving some of our community’s restaurants, spas, and activity centers. The possibilities are limitless!

For me, part of the attraction of The Longest Day is that my team and I are not limited to doing the same thing every year. In reality, we’re limited only by our imaginations. We can go big or scale it down. We have learned that we don’t have to be nervous about asking others to participate, because we’ve come to understand that many people have been affected by Alzheimer’s and want to join the fight.

So there you have it. Participating in The Longest Day gives me an opportunity to help raise awareness and funds for research so that one day we can truly live in a world without Alzheimer’s. I can think of no better way to honor my parents.

Join The Fight — Start Raising Funds

ABOUT THE LONGEST DAY
The Longest Day is a team event to raise funds and awareness for the Alzheimer’s Association®. Held annually on the summer solstice, the duration of this sunrise-to-sunset event symbolizes the challenging journey of those living with the disease and their caregivers. Teams are encouraged to create their own experience as they fundraise and participate in an activity they love to honor someone facing the disease.