Residents and Staff at Bedford Care marked World Alzheimer’s Day Friday with a barbeque feast, cake and balloon release. The public was invited to stop by, enjoy a plate of pulled pork, beans and cake, and learn about Alzheimer’s.
“Alzheimer’s is the sixth leading cause of death in the United States,” said Stacy Winstead, social services director for Bedford Care. “It’s more than heart disease and breast cancer.”
The public perception of a patient with Alzheimer’s is someone who forgets easily. However, Winstead said, the disease is a lot more than memory loss. Alzheimer’s causes parts of the brain to decay, she said.
“It’s a lot more than that. The dead parts of the brain affect a lot more (than memory),” she said.
According to the Alzheimer’s Association, a national effort to bring awareness to Alzheimer’s, every 65 seconds someone in the United States develops the disease. It affects over 5.7 million Americans and accounts for $277 billion in medical costs each year. There is currently no cure.
Although the entire month of September is Alzheimer’s awareness month, Winstead said Bedford Care decided to mark World Alzheimer’s Day with purple balloons, streamers, t-shirts and the barbeque lunch.
“Purple is the color of Alzheimer’s,” she explained. “We wanted to show support and bring awareness to Alzheimer’s.”
And, Winstead added, the proceeds from the lunch, which cost $7 a plate, were donated to Alzheimer’s MS at the Walk4Alz.
