First Walk to End Alzheimer's Event in Zanesville - WHIZ

First Walk to End Alzheimer's Event in Zanesville

More than 200 people wearing purple shirts filled Zane's Landing Park to walk for a cause close to their hearts.

Saturday, was the 1st ever Alzheimer's Association "Walk to End Alzheimer's" event in Zanesville. The walk is the largest fundraiser for the association both nationally and locally. More than 700 walks will take place throughout the United States in the upcoming weeks. The money raised at the event will go towards furthering research for the debilitating disease.

"We know that Alzheimer's is created through a series of proteins that create plaque and tangles in the brain," said Alzheimer's Association Developmental Director, Andy Junn. A lot of the research is geared towards figuring out how do we prevent those proteins from developing, but also looking at the different ways to mitigate the affects of those proteins once they have developed. "

Research efforts also includes learning new ways to help both care givers and victims of Alzheimer's Disease to find the best ways to cope with and improve the quality of life for people suffering from symptoms associated with Alzheimer's. Sharing with others is one method people affected by the Alzheimer's often use to feel empowered.

"As you know anytime you are going through something difficult in your life people tend to have blinders on when dealing with the situation in the moment, but walks like this and events like this really let people see that there are so many other people that are going through the exact same thing," said Junn.

At the event there was plenty of food provided by local community organizations and a raffle that guests participated in. The walk raised approximately $14,000 for its first year.