Walk Season is over....now what?

This year we participated in two Alzheimer’s Association walks, and raised money and donated to eight of them!! The past few months it’s been almost a full time job for me. Sending out emails, posting on social media and continually asking people to help us reach our goal. The outpouring of love and financial support has been overwhelming. The kindness and generosity of our friends and family was beyond spectacular. My heart is literally filled with so much joy and gratitude and I appreciate every single penny that was given to end this horrific disease. Many thanks to all of you who donated, walked with us or for us, and helped to raise over $35,000 💰😀

The Walk events always bring my disease front and center. In Walnut Creek I was on stage with my two grandsons, Ryan & Michael holding the blue flower. There is always a flower ceremony during the walks around the country. Each flower signifies your relationship to Alzheimer’s.

Purple means you lost someone to the disease, Yellow means you are a caregiver for someone with Alzheimer’s or related disorder, Orange is for those supporting the cause and Blue is for those who currently have Alzheimer’s. This year there is also a new flower, a White flower. It is for the first survivor and is held by a very young child at all the walks. We are all hopeful that there will be a cure soon!!!

Having my grandsons with me was wonderful and emotional. Ryan was crying and Michael was uncomfortable with the attention. The good news is they were surrounded by love and our family and friends, and we had a great day. My husband and kids were there of course, and one of my best friends sister and niece joined us from Sacramento.

BUNI'S BUDDIES 2017

My sister and best friend from high school also drove up from Modesto to walk with us. I had friends surprise me who I hadn’t seen in years, my ex husband, my step daughter and many many others were also there to support me. It’s because of them and all of you reading this that we were able to raise so much money. That’s what the Alzheimer’s Walk is all about. It’s about coming together and fighting this horrible disease. Spending time outside and showing the world we won’t let Alzheimer’s win. There will be a cure thanks to all of you!!!

Our walk in San Luis Obispo this past Saturday was also great and we were so excited to have our sweet grandson with us from Ventura, and his parents of course. We had a small but mighty group of very dear friends and enjoyed walking around the town together. Lunch afterwards was pretty nice too!

PAM'S PALS SLO 2017

No more walks, no more emails to send. No more nagging on Facebook and Twitter. No more thank you notes to write. It’s time to relax, spend time outside, have lunch with my husband and quit worrying about how much money I raised.

It was a wonderful walk season and I am so thank for the Alzheimer’s Association and their leadership in raising money & awareness to find a cure. And as I mentioned before, I'm so blessed and grateful for all of you.

I’m not worried about what’s next. I’m making every moment matter and know that right now is the best time in my life.  It’s not tomorrow or next year. It’s now!

God bless you all💜♰

And Happy Halloween🎃

Video production going on!

I've been quite busy the past few weeks and the fires in Napa and the surrounding area have been devastating to all of us. The smoke was pretty strong here a few days ago and my eyes were stinging and my nose was burning. So many people lost everything they had and it just breaks my heart. We donated food and diapers and some toys but it just doesn't seem like enough. I continue to pray for everyone who lost their home, their family and friends, their pets and all of their possessions😒

Last week I had my 5th infusion at UCSF and it went much better than the previous one. Thankfully they found my vein in my right arm this time and it was fairly painless. We also had a fund raiser for our Alzheimer's Walk at On Fire Pizza on Wednesday night. It was really fun and we had a great turn out. The best news is we raised over $200 for Alzheimer's research AND I am closer to my fund raising goal of $10,000!!!

Today I have an entire film crew here from Boston, and some local production folks from Petaluma. They are filming me for a commercial focusing on caregivers and the needs they have. It's a full day and they are actually filming me right now typing this blog! They also filmed me outside trimming the roses and just hanging around in the back patio. It's all about support for the caregivers so I'm happy to help and honored to be part of it. They arrived at 9am and will be here all day and into the evening. Unfortunately Bob is out of town in meetings but Kristen, Danielle and my friend Sylvia will be here soon. I'm sure it will be a little emotional for them as they are also part of my caregiver circle.

Most of the filming this morning was around me reading a letter I wrote to all of my friends and family asking for them to support Bob and not to forget him. It was hard to write and hard to read but it's important for everyone to remember Bob and my kids, and not just focus on my needs. As time moves on and I continue to experience more symptoms, Bob will be the one that needs help and support. My kids will need support, my friends and extended family will need support, but Bob is the one who will be taking on the majority of the care giving and I'm sure it won't be fun.

I thought it would be more emotional for me, but they asked me to read the letter several times, at least 20 times and to do things differently each time I read it. After awhile I almost forgot what the words meant and I didn't like that. I stopped and got back in the moment. This is hard, things are hard on both of us and I want to make sure I come across on camera as authentic. The pain is real and I do worry about what's next for my caregivers and the stress of caring for me.

We ended the day around 7pm and took some nice shots of me walking on the golf path with Danielle and Kristen. Our friend and neighbor bought a case of beer for the crew and they had a chance to relax at the end of a long day. Such great people and a very good experience.

I'm finishing this blog the morning after they left. I didn't have time to write the whole thing while they were filming me yesterday. When I reflect about the experience I feel grateful for the opportunity. I am amazed at the all the work it takes to film a 60 second spot. I'm in awe of the professional actors who can cry and evoke emotions on cue! But mostly I am honored for the chance to share my message, to remove the stigma of Alzheimer's, to honor the care givers and to shine a light on SeniorLink and all that they are doing!

Thank you all for your continued support, prayers and blessings💜

Tragic shooting in Vegas rocks my world.....

I am saddened and horrified by the shooting in Vegas during the Jason Aldeen concert last night. I woke up to the news several hours ago and can't shake the feelings I'm having. It's too close to home, both geographically and emotionally. I love country music and have been to Vegas many times. One of my best friends was just there last week with her family celebrating her daughters 21st birthday! Thinking about them being involved in something like this is horrifying.

The shooter was 64 years old. His brother spoke about him on TV this morning and he too is in shock. He has no history of violence and no known affiliation with terrorist organizations. The death toll is at 58 and over 500 more were injured. The deadliest shooting in our US history! What is going on?

I've been praying all morning for the families of those who were killed, and will continue to pray for all those in the hospital, and for everyone who was at the concert and had to run, trying to avoid being hit by the bullets. It's unimaginable! I had to turn off the TV because I've spent most of the morning in sadness. It's hard to imagine what was going through the shooters mind, what caused him to want to kill and injure all these people. Mental illness is such a mystery and obviously he had a plan that took some time to formulate. He didn't just wake up and have two automatic weapons in his car with several rounds of ammunition, he had a plan! All of these items were purchased some time ago. He went there to intentionally cause harm to others😩

I know he must have had demons in his head. I know he must have been mentally unstable. Anyone who does this type of thing is not sane. Anyone who even considers or fantasized about shooting someone is insane in my opinion. His family had no idea, no indications, no notice. I pray for them too.

I haven't been able to get myself going today. I thought writing a blog and getting things down on paper might help, but I still feel paralyzed and shaken. It's lunch time now and I haven't done a thing all day except drink some coffee and sit outside to reflect. I will leave the house now, I will get outside, I will be productive. I promise not to let this incident keep me down and ruin my spirit!

This is just another reminder to cherish every moment and not to wait to tell someone you love them. We just don't know what tomorrow will bring. God bless you all 🕇 Please stay safe💜