Walking to Remember, Walk to End Alzheimer's

This past Saturday I spent my morning at UMW as one of the photographers for the Walk to End Alzheimer's. I ran into the some old friends and acquaintances, felt a universal energy to find a  cure for this disease, met a lot of new and wonderful people working to end this disease and heard beautiful stories of loved ones taken by this disease.

It all started with an exceptional crowd of families and friends, walking for loved ones. When I walked onto the field, all these people were carrying flowers. Yellow, blue, purple and orange. Every flower represented meaning for the participant. Orange stood for those who supported the fight for Alzheimer's. Those holding blue flowers suffered from Alzheimer's. Yellow flowers represented the caregivers of those suffering from Alzheimer's. And the purple flowers honored those who lost a loved one to Alzheimer's.

Recognition was given to the people who raised the most money to fight this disease. The award; a lovely little plaque with a green sneaker on it representing the walk. After the awards ceremony, a brief exercise session prepared the walkers for their walk. Participants chose either a 1K or 3K distance. Then the walk began.

The flowers were gathered as the walkers took their spots, and as each participant walked, the flowers were planted in the Promise Garden. It was a beautiful sight, all those yellow, orange, blue and purple flowers spinning in the gentle breeze that graced the morning. As the walkers finished, they proceeded to the flower garden to find their flower.

And the flowers were beautiful with messages of love.

At the end of it all, over $81,000 was raised that day to find a cure.

Happy Shooting! - Kerri