Urbana Student Planned Event to Raise Money for Alzheimer’s

Naomi Maehr knows that Alzheimer’s is the sixth leading cause of death in America. She knows that it is the only cause of death out of the top ten in America that cannot be prevented, slowed, or cured. She knows that it and other related dementias killed approximately 700,000 people 65 or older last year, and in its doing so cost the U.S. $226 billion.

But there isn’t a statistic that says for each of the 5.3 million Americans with Alzheimer’s, a loved one’s heart breaks. That’s what really inspired the Urbana High School junior.

“It started with my grandfather. My grandfather is in the end-stage of Alzheimer’s right now, and seeing how it affects him… seeing this man I’ve known my entire life, the Head of the Department of Educational Psychology at the University of Michigan, probably the smartest person I’ve ever known, who doesn’t know who I am when I speak to him,” she said.

The “it” Maehr refers to is Dunk Alzheimer’s, the event she planned to raise money for the Alzheimer’s Association. It took place on Jan. 29 in conjunction with the varsity basketball game between crosstown rivals Urbana High School and Champaign Central High School.

“Naomi did most of the planning and leg work for the event,” said UHS Athletic Director Stephen Waller. “I helped coordinate with Champaign Central, but most of the credit should go to Naomi.”

Maehr and Waller agree that the event was a success. In the end, Dunk Alzheimer’s raised over $1,600 for the Alzheimer’s Association. As the occasion’s protagonist, Maehr enjoyed seeing so many people get involved to find a cure for the disease.

Maehr believes this is a cause many people can take an interest in.

“People are dying and we don’t know how to stop it,” she said. “I just feel like it’s such a worthy cause. I wanted to do something for my grandfather, but even if I didn’t have a family member with this disease, I would still think it is a good cause.”

If you are interested in donating to the Alzheimer’s Association, please visit www.alz.org.

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Sylvia Maehr

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