Shaw airman participates in Alzheimer's Association Walk for her dad in Illinois

Posted

SUBMITTED
The Alzheimer’s Association Walk to End Alzheimer’s will look different this year as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. Instead of hosting a large in-person gathering in Columbia, the Alzheimer’s Association is encouraging participants to walk as individuals or in small groups on sidewalks, tracks and trails wherever they choose in the community on Saturday.
For Staff Sgt. Elizabeth Barnes, fighting dementia from a distance is nothing new. While she’s stationed at Shaw Air Force Base, her family is back home in Illinois, where her 61-year-old father, Gregory S. Barnes Sr., is living with Frontal Temporal Dementia and Parkinson’s.
“Dad doesn’t believe that he’s sick. He can’t walk or speak much now, and he has a very short temper,” said Barnes. “He was a hard worker. He loved to fish. And as the baby of the family, I’ve always been Daddy’s girl.”
Like many families facing Alzheimer’s or another dementia, Barnes and her family struggled to come to terms with the changes they were seeing.
“Dad was good at hiding it at first,” said Barnes. When he was fired from his construction job, they knew something was wrong, but he still resisted. It was Barnes who ultimately convinced him to seek medical treatment.
“I wrote him a letter saying that all I wanted for Christmas was for him to go to the doctor,” said Barnes. Getting the diagnosis in 2011 helped Barnes and her siblings understand what was going on. “It was good for our family to know that it was an illness, not him. We weren’t doing anything wrong; it was just his brain changing.”
As her father’s dementia has progressed, caregiving has become more challenging. Barnes’s mother cares for him at home. He has bad days sometimes, and Barnes is glad that her brother is able to live there with his fiancé and child so that they can help.
Through Walk to End Alzheimer’s, Barnes is able to fight back against dementia from afar, even if she can’t be with her father in person to help care for him. Her team, “ALZ No More,” normally hosts a relay on base to raise funds, with donors pledging a dollar per lap. They haven’t been able to do that this year due to COVID restrictions, but Barnes is still raising funds. She plans to walk at Patriot Park on Saturday morning.
“Imagine having a regular conversation with your parent one day, and the next they can barely speak a simple sentence, said Barnes. “My father just turned 61 this year. With him being so young, I learned that you truly never know what life has in store for you, and you should live your life to the fullest. Please help us raise awareness, whether you would like to donate or join our team to do the walk.”
With the different format of Walk to End Alzheimer’s, it’s easier than ever for the Sumter community to get involved. Wherever participants choose to walk, they can track their steps and follow an interactive virtual route on the free Walk to End Alzheimer’s App. For free registration for Walk to End Alzheimer’s and the full event details, sign up at alz.org/sc/walk or call (800) 272-3900.
With the dollars raised by Walk to End Alzheimer’s, the Alzheimer’s Association provides care and support to families during these difficult times while also advancing critical research toward treatment and prevention of Alzheimer’s and all dementia.
“Alzheimer’s is not taking a hiatus during COVID-19, and neither can we,” said Cindy Alewine, president of the Alzheimer’s Association, South Carolina Chapter. “This year, more than ever, we need the support of our community to serve all those affected by Alzheimer’s and other dementia.”
As the COVID-19 pandemic continues to alter daily life and threaten the health of millions in the United States, the Alzheimer’s Association is providing virtual programs to ensure that dementia caregivers have access to information, support and resources. In addition, their free 24/7 Helpline (800) 272-3900 offers around-the-clock support for caregivers and families.
More than 5 million Americans are living with Alzheimer's disease – the sixth-leading cause of death in the United States. Additionally, more than 16 million family members and friends provide unpaid care to people living with Alzheimer’s and other dementias. In South Carolina alone, there are more than 95,000 individuals living with the disease and 318,000 people providing care for them.