August 8, 2024 • 29 mins
Clint Girlie speaks with Julie Milbauer and Mark Applegate from the Springfield chapter of the Alzheimer's Association to discuss their organizations efforts of support and funding research in Southwest Missouri. They also talk about the upcoming Walk to End Alzheimer's on September 28th at Jordan Valley Park.
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
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Speaker 1 (00:00):
Well, hello, and welcome to a show that we call
iHeart the Ozarks. This is a half hour long show
that airs across all five of our iHeart Radio stations
on Sundays right here in the Ozarks. Shocker. That's why
it's named iHeart the Ozarks. My name is Clint Gurley,
and I'm the vice president of Programming for iHeart Radio
here in Springfield, and I'm excited today. Each one of
these shows, you know, is dedicated to either an organization,
(00:21):
a group of people, sometimes just an individual is doing
a lot of good for our community. Today. One of
our old time friends, the Alzheimer's Associations here joining us,
but some new friends from it in Julie Milbauer. She's
the walk manager for this year's Walk to End Alzheimer's,
as well as Mark Applegate, who is very tech savvy
he went out of his way to tell me when
I couldn't get my computer to work, but also a
(00:43):
tremendous volunteer for the Alzheimer's Association. So I'm excited to
have you both. Hello everybody, Hi there, good morning. So
I want to start with you, Julie. For those who
don't know what the Alzheimer's Association does. I think it's
one of the organizations where you know it exists. You've
probably heard of the Walk to End Alzheimer's before. But Julie,
(01:06):
I'm just going to go out on a limb. I
don't think you are a scientist trying to find the
cure for Alzheimer's. So what exactly do you do and
does the Alzheimer's Association do for folks with Alzheimer's.
Speaker 2 (01:20):
You're absolutely right, there's no scientists here. The Alzheimer's Association
is one of the largest organizations to provide research, primarily
for to help find a cure for Alzheimer's and dementia.
So you know, we have chapters across the country. They
do research globally, and we also here in our community
(01:41):
we provide education. So we will go into organizations, businesses,
different places that just need to learn you know, those
ten warning signs or maybe some caregiver information. We'll go
out and provide those education spots. And we'll also we
also do community support groups.
Speaker 1 (01:59):
Gotcha and your footprint in Springfield looks like what?
Speaker 3 (02:05):
In Springfield? We have two staff here locally.
Speaker 2 (02:08):
We have a program manager Britney Fletcher and myself, But
we also have a large volunteer base. We have a
Walk committee with about twenty five volunteers that are on
that that help us do everything we related to the walk,
from securing sponsorships to the logistics, getting volunteers, and then,
like I said, for on the program side of things,
(02:30):
we're out in the community everywhere, just trying to reach
those people that have been impacted and do what we
can to help make their lives easier.
Speaker 1 (02:37):
Are you finding that the folks impacted is growing? That
number is growing. I know, the older I get, the
more I realize just how much me personally, Alzheimer's has
touched my life, my family, my friends and their families.
There is There's a lot happening with this disease, none
(02:59):
of it good. And I'm wondering if that is a
trend you guys are seeing as well. I completely understand
if that's a totally subjective thing, if it's just me
maybe not being as ignorant as I was before.
Speaker 2 (03:13):
No, you're absolutely correct. The number is increasing and the
age has gotten much younger. Oh wow, And if you
don't mind me pulling Mark in here, I know Mark
can talk a little more about that than even I can.
Speaker 1 (03:24):
Okay, awesome, Mark Applegate, glad they have you.
Speaker 4 (03:27):
Yeah, absolutely, Yeah. There's a little over one hundred and
twenty thousand people in Missouri that have the disease. It's
definitely growing in quantity, but it's also growing in being diagnosed,
because we're much better diagnosing now than it was even
fifteen twenty years ago, and people are starting to have
a conversation about it rather than it being a stigma
because for a long time, people would call it old
(03:48):
timer's disease, and they say, oh, as you get older,
you're just going to have that, you get hardening of
the arteries or whatever the different things they used to
call it. Then they realize that, no, there's people well,
first of all, there's people in their hundreds, they're sharp
as attack. You know, my dad eighty four and he's
eighty three, and East Sharper and I am. And then
there's also people in town here in their twenties and
thirties to have a disease. So well, it does. That
(04:10):
is the primary risk factor. The older you get, the
more your likelihood is. It's it's not the only risk
factor either, So it's yeah, I think it's just greatly underdiagnosed.
We're going to talk to more, more people are seeing
it now, so they're diagnosing them.
Speaker 1 (04:24):
We're going to talk about the walked end Alzheimer's coming up,
and I want to make sure that we do spend
some time on that. But I also think that it
would it would be a good thing for us to
present to those listening today maybe some of the things
to be on the lookout for when we're talking about Alzheimer's.
You mentioned Mark that it's it's you know, becoming easier
(04:46):
through education to identify. More people are getting themselves maybe
checked out. More people are realizing what to be on
the lookout for. What are those things that we can
kind of take with us today and apply to our
own lives, the family members lives, friends lives that we
can be on the lookout for.
Speaker 4 (05:04):
Yeah, that's great, you'd be happy to the Yeah, there's
the biggest thing. Memory is what everyone kind of thinks
of with Alzheimer's, obviously, but it's it's not just the
forgetting where I parked my car at Walmart, because I
started doing that in my twenties. It's more getting to
Walmart and thinking where am I or thinking why did
(05:24):
I even come here to begin with, Although that even
is a little questionable. It's things that disrupt your life. You'll,
you'll when you see someone that has a disease and
a car in the early stage, you'll kind of see it.
You'll you'll see it when you when you see it,
I don't know if it makes sense or not sure.
It's the familiar not being familiar anymore. Also, I know
(05:46):
a gentleman that has since passed away was twenty twenty
five year military mechanic in the military. He called his
wife out of the car one day after he retired
and said, hey, I need that the tool that takes
off that thing he was pointing ant, and he couldn't
remember what a wrench was called, or a socket or
anything any any tool that would take that off, you know,
to his wife, and his wife like, I don't know
(06:07):
what it's called, you know, and she at that point realized, Oh,
that's that's disruptive. That's not the normal. He would not
normally forget that, you know. So if she took him
to the doctor, and the doctor one of the first
things they asked when you walk in is what's your
social twenty five year military vet couldn't remember a social leader.
So the things that used to be familiar seemed are
(06:28):
not familiar. So it's a big part of it.
Speaker 1 (06:30):
And I know, you know, no diseases one size fits all,
and so with especially like Alzheimer's disease specifically what we're
talking about today, the onset of I don't know if
there's symptoms, if they're just you know, whatever you want
to call them, can come slowly, they can come quickly, right,
(06:50):
And so how important is it to be like out
in front of this as much as possible?
Speaker 4 (06:58):
You know, it used to be kind of important back
when they weren't diagnosing it very well or at all,
But now in the last ten years, it's become much
more important. In the last two or three years, has
become way more important because we actually finally have a
couple of drugs that have been FDA approved that can
slow the progression of the disease for the first time.
So but the catch what that is you got to
catch it early. If you wait until you're you've had
it for two or three years, what's happening in your
(07:20):
brain isn't It's not psychological. Your brain is actually shrinking
in mass and shrinking and neurons are dying, so you
got to catch it quick to be able to be
on the new mess. Okay, and there's about another d
hundred and some on beds coming through the pipeline that
are may even be better than these, So that's that's. Yeah,
you gotta, you gotta. As you have any sort of
(07:41):
thing come up, just talk to your doctor. If the
doctor says, oh, no, you're fine, but you still have
a nagging thing, talk to a different doctor because some
doctors they don't want to diagnose it because there's not
a simple shot that you give or a pill and
off you go you're cured. But you got to take
it seriously.
Speaker 1 (07:57):
Yeah, early, I love that you just answered that in
that way because my next two questions were literally, like
partially answered already. So I'll ask you the first one,
and you alluded to it earlier. What does this disease actually?
Do you know? There's some there's some knowledge to it. Oh,
it's people forgetting stuff. But like you mentioned, shrinking of
(08:19):
the brain, is that what is happening when you're diagnosed
with Alzheimer's, what's physically taking place?
Speaker 4 (08:25):
Let me drop back one layer back a little bit
dementia versus Alzheimer's dementia itself is the list of symptoms
like the memory, like losing track where you are losing
time and space, or judgment and stuff like that. That's the
list of symptoms, and then Alzheimer's is the number one
cause of that list of symptoms.
Speaker 1 (08:45):
So it's so it's.
Speaker 4 (08:47):
Called Alzheimer's and related dementias because there's a whole bunch
of different types, and that those different types are what's
going on in the brain regular Alzheimer's, if you will.
The cause is still in my dispute. The hallmark things
you see are the plaques and tangles we kind of
all hear about. There's probably other things also involved, inflammation
(09:08):
of your brain, blood flow, all sorts of things. Some
of those other types of dementia also relate to what's
going on. There's one called Louis body dementia, that which
is what Robin Williams was very likely diagnosed with before
he died by suicide. It has a different cause, it's
a special protein, it has a different it does different
(09:30):
things to the brain, but it does do some of
those all those same things too. It does cause memory
problems and behavior problems and stuff like that. So what
ends up happening is, bottom line, regardless of what type
you have, the brain is going to shrink and there's
gonna be parts die, And it depends on what type
you have on what part gets hit. Kind of interesting.
My mom, whose eightieth birthday would have been today, actually
(09:54):
when she first got diagnosed, she really did nothing, really
changed a whole lot, but for about five years and
then she's a walker. She walked tons all the town
at in Republic. She would get her hot and cold confused,
like on a day like two or three days ago,
in one hundred degrees, she'd wear mittens and I go
(10:15):
on for a walk within her. Where are you wearing
your mittens?
Speaker 1 (10:17):
You know?
Speaker 4 (10:17):
And I just want to know. I just need him, okay,
you know her brain was the part of her brain
the hypothelamis is messing up that controls how you feel
and how you perceive temperature and how your body responds
to it was getting broken. So it kind of depends
on what type you have and where it goes haywire.
But the bottom line is the brain goes haywire, and
it's that part of it dies or shrinks.
Speaker 1 (10:40):
Are all about so many different kinds. The Alzheimer's Association
works as an umbrella to cover all of them, raising
money for research and support for everyone afflicted by every
iteration of the disease, which is amazing. That's who we're
talking to you today. By the way, the Alzheimer's Association.
You just heard. Mark Applegate is a volunteer. We got
to Milbauer, who's walk manager for the Walk to End
(11:02):
Alzheimer's coming up in late September. So we'll get to that, Julie.
I promise you, Julie, we're going to get to it.
It's happening. We've got a lot of time here. It's
a half hour long show. The other question that Mark
you gave a partial answer to before I even asked
the question, was you mentioned drugs coming down the pipeline.
There's been two FDA approved already, you mentioned hundreds more.
(11:23):
Are we at all close to figuring this thing out
or at least some of the iterations of this to
get a a I don't even want to use the
word cure, but I feel like that may be too hopeful.
But I mean, are we close to a cure of
some kind?
Speaker 4 (11:38):
We're definitely close when it was five years ago or
ten years ago the first time as a year or
two ago when la Keimby was first approved. We have
the first drug that would actually slow the progression. Previously,
all we've done is just kind of worked on the symptoms,
you know, the agitation that you can kind of there's
a couple drugs that have been approved for twenty years
(11:58):
that would kind of clear the mind a little bit
and stuff and that kind of thing. But yeah, I
really think that there will I don't know. Well, first
of all, since there's so many different causes and so
many different types, there isn't gonna be one single cure.
What will probably end up happening is we'll find ways
to keep pushing back the disease. You're, like I said
(12:18):
at the beginning, the most important risk factors the older
you get. So if person starts getting it at eighty,
if you could push it back ten, fifteen, twenty twenty
five years, then it's the equivalent of a cure. Because
something else I hate to be sad about it or
morbid about it, but something else is going to become
a bigger problem for a person one hundred years old
than the onset of Alzheimer's, which sometimes takes like my
(12:42):
mom fifteen years to work itself out, you know. So
I think there'll be a pushback to the point where
it's like a cure. There could also be individual types
that are cured. The problem is the brain is a
complex deal. It's got a nifty little mode around it,
the blood brain barrier to keep stuff from I'm getting
in that way. You know, if you if you get
(13:03):
a comic cold, doesn't get into your brain and kill
your brain. But it also works so good that it
keeps some meds out too, So there's it's trickier to
get meds. Plus not everyone's willing. I'm just you know,
I do. I'm the guinea pig on lots of clinical
studies because I've had so many cases in my family,
and I've done all the different things blood bar punctures
(13:23):
and pet scans and all these cognitive tests, but none
of them ask for volunteers to dig into your brain
take a chunk of brain out of study. So it's
studying something You're having to try to find other ways
to study. So the only people they get to get
chunks of brain to study, or people that are already
on a table to have something else done and they ask, hey,
can I have a slice or whatever? You know, and
(13:44):
or someone that's already dead, you know. That's so. Yeah,
it's just a hard disease to study. And these people
that I guinea pig for it at wash you and
at Vanderbilt in place like that are super super intelligent.
I my my IQ is room temperature compared to theirs.
I mean, it's just shocked how smart they are. I
feel like we're on the right track. And Alzheimer Associations
(14:05):
pumps tons of money into these studies, and it's their
budget is growing because people see the need, so more
money is getting put into the studies. I'm very optimistic.
I would not have said that when my mom was
diagnosed in two thousand and nine. I was super diagnosed,
super optimistic, But I'm I'm very optimistic now.
Speaker 1 (14:22):
Yeah, Julie, I'm curious working there at the Alzheimer's Association,
is there a feeling of optimism of hope, maybe more
now than there has been before.
Speaker 3 (14:31):
There really is.
Speaker 2 (14:32):
I've only been with the Association about a year and
a half, and I've been amazed at what I've seen happen.
Like Mark was talking about with the medications coming out
just in the time that I've been here. But I
just had a lunch the other day with John Berlin,
who's a big part of our organization and our executive director.
They attended the aai C conference, which is one of
the biggest conferences on Alzheimer's research, and they were both
(14:56):
so pumped about what they learned. The researchers they got
to talk to the progression that they've made in looking
at prevention as well as, you know, being able to
slow it down and eventually hopefully finding a way to
have a cure, and they just felt like that it's
right there on the custom They've made so much progress.
Speaker 1 (15:16):
That's fantastic and really exciting to hear. I'm not alone
in saying that I've had family members Mark obviously here,
but also just within the area you mentioned one hundred
and twenty thousand I believe in Missouri folks who have
either are currently or Yeah. It's a huge number. And
one other part of this has to do with folks
(15:38):
like me and Mark and those who have family members
or friends that aren't affected by this. I'm curious to
what the support looks like from you all the raising
of money funding studies. Clearly that's working. But there's a
whole other side to what the Alzheimer's Association does, and
that's get in rooms with people. What does that look
(15:58):
like like? What kind of support are you guys offering
for what you do for the public.
Speaker 4 (16:02):
So I as a volunteer, one thing I've done and
the Association trained me on how to do this some
time ago. Now it's been not long after her my
mom's symptoms started getting being worse. I facilitate support groups.
We have a sport group in Springfield that meets norma
meets the fourth Tuesday of the month. This month is
gonna beet the third Tuesday, but we have and it's
it's grown to having twenty five or thirty people. I
(16:26):
have five different support groups, including one that's on zoom,
and I'm gonna be adding.
Speaker 1 (16:29):
More of them soon.
Speaker 4 (16:31):
There's other ones like me, a lot of other ones
like me in Missouri that have been trained by the
Association that do a monthly support group. They also have
a one hundred number that's it's twenty four to seven
and it's not staffed by people that have a spreadsheet.
Speaker 1 (16:47):
They have to look around.
Speaker 4 (16:47):
Okay, now they ask for this or that, Especially people
that are clinical clinician level folks that know what they're
talking about. They have answers for the things you're gonna have.
So if a person has at three am, if they
if they're love one's wandering around, they haven't ever wandered
around before, and they're trying to get out of the house,
but they're not really worried about them running away where
they need to call nine to one one but they
don't know really what to do. They can call the
(17:08):
one a hindred number at the Alzheimer Association and get
a good answer, get a good quick answer that's free,
and that's so that's that's a big part of the
support too. The education classes are good too. We do
education classes all over those arcs I'm and several different
We do ten warning science presentations, We do what to
do when there's certain behaviors presentations. We have resource fairs
(17:31):
and stuff like that. But the sad part about the
whole deal is a lot of people that give the disease,
their loved one stays home with them. They're afraid to
go out because they might make a mistake, or they
might wonder why or they might something and they just
basically sit there sadly alone. And that's not good for them.
It's not good for their brains, not good for the
caregiver either, the caregiver. A lot of times we'll get
(17:52):
I mean, the percentage of caregivers that are twenty four
to seven caregivers they get sick themselves is high. I
forget the number, but it's shockingly high. In fact, a
lot of times they end up passing away before the
person of dementia oh wow, because the stress is so much.
They're they're sleeping with one eye open, you know, and
and and there are already a lot of times in
their seventies or eighties or nineties, and and then there's
(18:13):
a fall or whatever, you know, and there are supports limited.
So I worked for all the area Agency on Aging.
We do a bunch of stuff also for the for
these folks as well. But even between our company, which
we have thirty seven senior centers in those arcs and
Alzheimers Association, the demand should be tremendous because the numbers,
but a lot of them, unfortunately are either don't know
(18:35):
or or don't utilize.
Speaker 1 (18:38):
Yeah, I remember with my grandfather it was pride, you know,
it was a not wanting to admit it, and then
it was a fight. I mean it was it was
a fight every time between him and my mom, who
ended up.
Speaker 4 (18:54):
With seeing an nazis we can be this thing, you know,
I totally get it. Yeah, you know, well it's it's
yourself by your bootstraps generation.
Speaker 1 (19:02):
Yeah. Absolutely, And it's great to know that there is
support out there for not just folks who have a
variation of Alzheimer's at dementia, but also the people who
are caring for them and exciting to hear some hope
moving forward, maybe with some potential medical fixes, which is
really cool. So talking with Mark Applegate and Julie Milbauert
from the Alzheimer's Association, We've got a walk coming up,
(19:26):
and Julie, I know you're the manager of this walk,
tell me a little bit. Well, first of all, let's
just get the logistics out of the way, the when,
the where, who, you know, all that stuff. Let's do
that and then let's dive in a little bit deeper.
Speaker 2 (19:41):
Okay, absolutely, Our walk in Springfield is going to be
on Saturday, September twenty eighth over at Jordan Valley, Park.
Speaker 3 (19:49):
We'll start with registration at seven.
Speaker 2 (19:51):
Thirty in the morning, and the walk will start with
an opening ceremony about nine o'clock. Ethan Fourhees has been
our MC for that event now for many many years,
so we you know, invite everybody.
Speaker 3 (20:04):
You know a lot of us.
Speaker 2 (20:05):
A lot of the people who come come because they're caregivers,
they've lost somebody, people who've.
Speaker 3 (20:11):
Been recently diagnosed.
Speaker 2 (20:13):
But I encourage everybody because you know, I fight this
fight because I don't want to have a family member
that gets that diagnosis. I've met so many people along
the way in this last year and a half and
the stories from caregivers, I mean, Mark's right, what they're
putting theirselves through and the little support that they get.
(20:34):
Often I want to see us in this. So we
have a wonderful ceremony out there. We had last year
about eleven hundred people joined us over there at the park.
It's not a real long walk. Oftentimes people say, oh,
but I can't do the walk. Come join us anyway,
you can sit enjoy the ceremony. There's we have a
lot of our sponsors that have booths out there with
(20:54):
different information.
Speaker 1 (20:55):
Sure besides being a tremendous show of support for those
going through this. Does it help in other ways too?
Speaker 2 (21:05):
Yes, The Walked into Alzheimer's is the largest fundraisers for
the Alzheimer's Association. We do over six hundred walks across
the country. I actually am responsible for the Springfield, Joplin,
and Lake of the Ozark walks, so that is our
biggest fundraiser. They can actually sign up online and register
themselves or their team. There's an app that they can
(21:26):
track their progress in, and you know, it's just it's
how we fund all of this that we do, and
it's important to know that some that's going back into
our community. You know, research is the utmost because we
want to find the cure, but it also helps fund
those scenes that Mark talked about as far as education
and support groups and being able to provide resources.
Speaker 1 (21:47):
I know I went to your website earlier before this,
because I do a good thirty seconds of research before
I record these shows, guys, so I'm totally prepared. But
what was encouraging to see is there on the main
page there is a goal tracker for money raise for
the Walk to End Alzheimer's and we are less than
(22:07):
two months but closer to two months than to one
from the walk coming up on the twenty eighth of September,
and you guys are about just over halfway to the goal,
which is really inspiring to see. Do you tend to
see that pick up or slow down as you get closer.
I know different fundraisers see different results when it comes
to trying to make that goal.
Speaker 2 (22:28):
I'm fully confident this will pick up before we reach.
If you notice, right now, we've only got about two
hundred and seventy four people signed up for it. I
fully anticipate we will have eleven or twelve hundred by
the time it comes walk day, and with those participants
typically we see the increase in the funding as well.
Speaker 1 (22:46):
Yeah. So September twenty eighth, Jordan Valley Park. If you
want to get more information or register yourself or a team,
as you mentioned, what is the right place to go,
and that.
Speaker 3 (23:01):
To get directly to the Springfield Walk, they can go
to alz dot org slash Springfield mo Walk.
Speaker 1 (23:09):
Okay, awesome. And then if it's just the alz dot
org day, remember it's pretty easy to navigate to find
information Springfield.
Speaker 3 (23:16):
Local right absolutely, And.
Speaker 1 (23:18):
You mentioned you do Joplin, Lake of the Ozarks, and
us here in Springfield. Which one's better? I'm kidding the
answer that.
Speaker 3 (23:27):
Well, Springfield is definitely the largest.
Speaker 1 (23:29):
I would hope, so, I mean just based on population alone,
but you never know. And it's like asking me to
pick a favorite kid. Although I'm sure you've seen them
running around to the background here. I have two of them,
and some days I do have favorites.
Speaker 3 (23:43):
I get that I have a few more than.
Speaker 1 (23:45):
That, but I get that we've gone I don't know,
six or seven minutes left here, so we've done really,
really good. I did want to ask in Mark, I
think I know the answer to this, but I always
like to know, and I feel like it drives home
just how important this pause is when you hear personal stories.
So I'll go to both of you. Mark, you mentioned
(24:05):
parents that have had Alzheimer's the diagnosis. Is that what
got you in?
Speaker 3 (24:11):
Like?
Speaker 1 (24:11):
What was the driving force that got you involved with
the Alzheimer's Association? Why do you continue to do it?
Speaker 4 (24:17):
Yeah, that's definitely what got me involved. So my my
grandmother had the disease twenty five years ago, wonderful lady.
Her her husband was a car dealer, and when she
bring him. He'd bring home new cars to her all
the time, and she'd take us to school on a
different car every day, and sometimes she would turn out
of the highway and she'd peel out on accident because
(24:39):
she wasn't used to the car. And she's like eighty
at the time. You know, we just loved it that her.
She's just an absolute favorite. And and got the disease,
and we'd lost her long before we lost her health wise.
We lost her metally too, and it was just tragic.
And then my mom and I two thousand and nine
developed it. We should have known better at that time
when they they gave us a diagnosis, but we really
didn't start watching getting real serious until we started seeing
(25:02):
the signs more. And that was a few more years.
But she was in nursing home from twenty eighteen until
she passed away on July second. I told her at
the time, you know, when we had to put a
nursing home, I said, I'll do everything I can to
find a cure over the years, and I'll do the
best I can to help other people because she's she
(25:22):
was always the type that would help other people that
also had the disease because she knew a lot about
it too, So yeah, that's definitely driving force. And that's
one of the neat things about the walk too. You
go to the walk, and I won't give away the
secret sauce of all the different stuff about it, but
you see on the homepage of these pictures holding up
these flowers. You go to the Jordan Valley Park and
all these flowers are spinning the wind and stuff like that.
(25:44):
But each color, each color flower matches why you're in
for the disease or what interest you have, and you see,
you know I have. I had an interest of yellow,
and I had an interest of purple. Based on what
those things mean. I'm not gonna give away because it's
one of the neat things about going there. Seeing two
hundred or four hundred and six hundred other people with
the same color flower spinning in the wind. It really
(26:06):
gives you an encouragement to know that you're not alone.
And it was a huge blessing to me, for sure.
It always has been a huge blessing to me. I
go to multiple walks.
Speaker 1 (26:14):
Yeah, you mentioned she was a walker out in Republic.
I know she would have loved it. When we finally
got this. I'm just right down the block here in Republic,
And I know she would have loved the new trail
around the new aquatic center of the Rush here and
just watching those kids. I'd love driving by it all
the time and watching the kids just having a blast.
I'm sure she would have loved that too, Absolutely, absolutely.
Speaker 4 (26:36):
She used to walk all over town and stuff and
always she's one of the hiker type two and stuff.
Speaker 1 (26:41):
Yeah, well, thanks for sharing that, Mark, I appreciate it. Julie,
what about you? What has you so involved with the
Alzheimer's Association that you couldn't help but work for it?
Speaker 2 (26:51):
You know? Well, I've always had a love of helping
people and giving back to the community. I've been in
nonprofit for over thirty years. When I found this role,
it was it was important to me. Like I said,
I have not been struck personally. I do have an
ex mother in law who recently was just moved to
(27:12):
Springfield from Nebraska. I've seen her a couple of times,
and it's it's very challenging to see knowing what she
was and who she's become and how it's affected her
family and her children. But really it's about it's about
helping people. The stories I hear going out. You know,
I spent many years working with at risk youth, and
(27:35):
people say, what, you know, it's quite a difference, but
it's not. It's it's these stories are just as heartbreaking.
And you know, we spoke earlier about the caregivers, and
I met a couple families out in Willard this week
when I attended a support group, and my heart just
breaks form for the way things have had to change
in their lives, and I just want to do everything
(27:56):
I can to make make a difference in that.
Speaker 1 (27:58):
Absolutely, we have been so lucky to have you guys
both share your knowledge, your passion, also the information about
not just the Alzheimer's Association, what that looks like, the
supported offers here in the Ozarks, but also the Walk
to End Holzheimer's coming up on the twenty eighth of September.
One more time with how to get involved with the
(28:20):
walk and then maybe somehow to just get involved with
the Alzheimer's Association. You know, if somebody does hear this
and they're finding themselves touched in some way by this disease,
the best way to go ahead and start reaching out
for that support. So let's do the walk information first,
then let's do the other one next.
Speaker 2 (28:38):
Sure well join us on Saturday, September twenty eighth at
Jordan Valley Park. You can register your team or as
an individual at alz dot org slash Springfield Mole Walk
or give me a call at four one seven nine
eight eight one oh one, and then general Alzheimer's information.
(28:59):
They can visit the website at alz dot org or
our eight hundred number is a tremendous resource eight hundred
two seven two three nine hundred. You can get answers
to just about anything related to Alzheimer's.
Speaker 1 (29:11):
That's fantastic. My thanks to you guys. You were fantastic.
Julie Milbauer, Mark Applegay, I told you it would go
by fast, isn't it?
Speaker 3 (29:18):
It did?
Speaker 4 (29:19):
Like?
Speaker 1 (29:19):
Why is he wrapping us up early? I'm not. In fact,
I'm fighting the clock right now to get this thing
in at the thirty minute mark here. But you guys
were fantastic. Thank you so much for doing this and
look forward to talking with you guys soon. Good luck
with the walk coming up and everything you guys are
doing sounds like a lot, but it also sounds like
it's needed. So thank you, guys, Thank you.
Speaker 3 (29:37):
We appreciate it.
Speaker 1 (29:39):
Thank you. By the way, who is listening now to this?
If you're only catching part of it, you can go
back and listen anytime. Just search Ihearttheosarks on our iHeartRadio app.
For myself, Clint Gurley, the rest of our staff here
at iHeartRadio and Springfield, thank you so much for listening,
and have a great rest of your day.
Well, hello, and welcome to a show that we call
iHeart the Ozarks. This is a half hour long show
that airs across all five of our iHeart Radio stations
on Sundays right here in the Ozarks. Shocker. That's why
it's named iHeart the Ozarks. My name is Clint Gurley,
and I'm the vice president of Programming for iHeart Radio
here in Springfield, and I'm excited today. Each one of
these shows, you know, is dedicated to either an organization,
(00:21):
a group of people, sometimes just an individual is doing
a lot of good for our community. Today. One of
our old time friends, the Alzheimer's Associations here joining us,
but some new friends from it in Julie Milbauer. She's
the walk manager for this year's Walk to End Alzheimer's,
as well as Mark Applegate, who is very tech savvy
he went out of his way to tell me when
I couldn't get my computer to work, but also a
(00:43):
tremendous volunteer for the Alzheimer's Association. So I'm excited to
have you both. Hello everybody, Hi there, good morning. So
I want to start with you, Julie. For those who
don't know what the Alzheimer's Association does. I think it's
one of the organizations where you know it exists. You've
probably heard of the Walk to End Alzheimer's before. But Julie,
(01:06):
I'm just going to go out on a limb. I
don't think you are a scientist trying to find the
cure for Alzheimer's. So what exactly do you do and
does the Alzheimer's Association do for folks with Alzheimer's.
Speaker 2 (01:20):
You're absolutely right, there's no scientists here. The Alzheimer's Association
is one of the largest organizations to provide research, primarily
for to help find a cure for Alzheimer's and dementia.
So you know, we have chapters across the country. They
do research globally, and we also here in our community
(01:41):
we provide education. So we will go into organizations, businesses,
different places that just need to learn you know, those
ten warning signs or maybe some caregiver information. We'll go
out and provide those education spots. And we'll also we
also do community support groups.
Speaker 1 (01:59):
Gotcha and your footprint in Springfield looks like what?
Speaker 3 (02:05):
In Springfield? We have two staff here locally.
Speaker 2 (02:08):
We have a program manager Britney Fletcher and myself, But
we also have a large volunteer base. We have a
Walk committee with about twenty five volunteers that are on
that that help us do everything we related to the walk,
from securing sponsorships to the logistics, getting volunteers, and then,
like I said, for on the program side of things,
(02:30):
we're out in the community everywhere, just trying to reach
those people that have been impacted and do what we
can to help make their lives easier.
Speaker 1 (02:37):
Are you finding that the folks impacted is growing? That
number is growing. I know, the older I get, the
more I realize just how much me personally, Alzheimer's has
touched my life, my family, my friends and their families.
There is There's a lot happening with this disease, none
(02:59):
of it good. And I'm wondering if that is a
trend you guys are seeing as well. I completely understand
if that's a totally subjective thing, if it's just me
maybe not being as ignorant as I was before.
Speaker 2 (03:13):
No, you're absolutely correct. The number is increasing and the
age has gotten much younger. Oh wow, And if you
don't mind me pulling Mark in here, I know Mark
can talk a little more about that than even I can.
Speaker 1 (03:24):
Okay, awesome, Mark Applegate, glad they have you.
Speaker 4 (03:27):
Yeah, absolutely, Yeah. There's a little over one hundred and
twenty thousand people in Missouri that have the disease. It's
definitely growing in quantity, but it's also growing in being diagnosed,
because we're much better diagnosing now than it was even
fifteen twenty years ago, and people are starting to have
a conversation about it rather than it being a stigma
because for a long time, people would call it old
(03:48):
timer's disease, and they say, oh, as you get older,
you're just going to have that, you get hardening of
the arteries or whatever the different things they used to
call it. Then they realize that, no, there's people well,
first of all, there's people in their hundreds, they're sharp
as attack. You know, my dad eighty four and he's
eighty three, and East Sharper and I am. And then
there's also people in town here in their twenties and
thirties to have a disease. So well, it does. That
(04:10):
is the primary risk factor. The older you get, the
more your likelihood is. It's it's not the only risk
factor either, So it's yeah, I think it's just greatly underdiagnosed.
We're going to talk to more, more people are seeing
it now, so they're diagnosing them.
Speaker 1 (04:24):
We're going to talk about the walked end Alzheimer's coming up,
and I want to make sure that we do spend
some time on that. But I also think that it
would it would be a good thing for us to
present to those listening today maybe some of the things
to be on the lookout for when we're talking about Alzheimer's.
You mentioned Mark that it's it's you know, becoming easier
(04:46):
through education to identify. More people are getting themselves maybe
checked out. More people are realizing what to be on
the lookout for. What are those things that we can
kind of take with us today and apply to our
own lives, the family members lives, friends lives that we
can be on the lookout for.
Speaker 4 (05:04):
Yeah, that's great, you'd be happy to the Yeah, there's
the biggest thing. Memory is what everyone kind of thinks
of with Alzheimer's, obviously, but it's it's not just the
forgetting where I parked my car at Walmart, because I
started doing that in my twenties. It's more getting to
Walmart and thinking where am I or thinking why did
(05:24):
I even come here to begin with, Although that even
is a little questionable. It's things that disrupt your life. You'll,
you'll when you see someone that has a disease and
a car in the early stage, you'll kind of see it.
You'll you'll see it when you when you see it,
I don't know if it makes sense or not sure.
It's the familiar not being familiar anymore. Also, I know
(05:46):
a gentleman that has since passed away was twenty twenty
five year military mechanic in the military. He called his
wife out of the car one day after he retired
and said, hey, I need that the tool that takes
off that thing he was pointing ant, and he couldn't
remember what a wrench was called, or a socket or
anything any any tool that would take that off, you know,
to his wife, and his wife like, I don't know
(06:07):
what it's called, you know, and she at that point realized, Oh,
that's that's disruptive. That's not the normal. He would not
normally forget that, you know. So if she took him
to the doctor, and the doctor one of the first
things they asked when you walk in is what's your
social twenty five year military vet couldn't remember a social leader.
So the things that used to be familiar seemed are
(06:28):
not familiar. So it's a big part of it.
Speaker 1 (06:30):
And I know, you know, no diseases one size fits all,
and so with especially like Alzheimer's disease specifically what we're
talking about today, the onset of I don't know if
there's symptoms, if they're just you know, whatever you want
to call them, can come slowly, they can come quickly, right,
(06:50):
And so how important is it to be like out
in front of this as much as possible?
Speaker 4 (06:58):
You know, it used to be kind of important back
when they weren't diagnosing it very well or at all,
But now in the last ten years, it's become much
more important. In the last two or three years, has
become way more important because we actually finally have a
couple of drugs that have been FDA approved that can
slow the progression of the disease for the first time.
So but the catch what that is you got to
catch it early. If you wait until you're you've had
it for two or three years, what's happening in your
(07:20):
brain isn't It's not psychological. Your brain is actually shrinking
in mass and shrinking and neurons are dying, so you
got to catch it quick to be able to be
on the new mess. Okay, and there's about another d
hundred and some on beds coming through the pipeline that
are may even be better than these, So that's that's. Yeah,
you gotta, you gotta. As you have any sort of
(07:41):
thing come up, just talk to your doctor. If the
doctor says, oh, no, you're fine, but you still have
a nagging thing, talk to a different doctor because some
doctors they don't want to diagnose it because there's not
a simple shot that you give or a pill and
off you go you're cured. But you got to take
it seriously.
Speaker 1 (07:57):
Yeah, early, I love that you just answered that in
that way because my next two questions were literally, like
partially answered already. So I'll ask you the first one,
and you alluded to it earlier. What does this disease actually?
Do you know? There's some there's some knowledge to it. Oh,
it's people forgetting stuff. But like you mentioned, shrinking of
(08:19):
the brain, is that what is happening when you're diagnosed
with Alzheimer's, what's physically taking place?
Speaker 4 (08:25):
Let me drop back one layer back a little bit
dementia versus Alzheimer's dementia itself is the list of symptoms
like the memory, like losing track where you are losing
time and space, or judgment and stuff like that. That's the
list of symptoms, and then Alzheimer's is the number one
cause of that list of symptoms.
Speaker 1 (08:45):
So it's so it's.
Speaker 4 (08:47):
Called Alzheimer's and related dementias because there's a whole bunch
of different types, and that those different types are what's
going on in the brain regular Alzheimer's, if you will.
The cause is still in my dispute. The hallmark things
you see are the plaques and tangles we kind of
all hear about. There's probably other things also involved, inflammation
(09:08):
of your brain, blood flow, all sorts of things. Some
of those other types of dementia also relate to what's
going on. There's one called Louis body dementia, that which
is what Robin Williams was very likely diagnosed with before
he died by suicide. It has a different cause, it's
a special protein, it has a different it does different
(09:30):
things to the brain, but it does do some of
those all those same things too. It does cause memory
problems and behavior problems and stuff like that. So what
ends up happening is, bottom line, regardless of what type
you have, the brain is going to shrink and there's
gonna be parts die, And it depends on what type
you have on what part gets hit. Kind of interesting.
My mom, whose eightieth birthday would have been today, actually
(09:54):
when she first got diagnosed, she really did nothing, really
changed a whole lot, but for about five years and
then she's a walker. She walked tons all the town
at in Republic. She would get her hot and cold confused,
like on a day like two or three days ago,
in one hundred degrees, she'd wear mittens and I go
(10:15):
on for a walk within her. Where are you wearing
your mittens?
Speaker 1 (10:17):
You know?
Speaker 4 (10:17):
And I just want to know. I just need him, okay,
you know her brain was the part of her brain
the hypothelamis is messing up that controls how you feel
and how you perceive temperature and how your body responds
to it was getting broken. So it kind of depends
on what type you have and where it goes haywire.
But the bottom line is the brain goes haywire, and
it's that part of it dies or shrinks.
Speaker 1 (10:40):
Are all about so many different kinds. The Alzheimer's Association
works as an umbrella to cover all of them, raising
money for research and support for everyone afflicted by every
iteration of the disease, which is amazing. That's who we're
talking to you today. By the way, the Alzheimer's Association.
You just heard. Mark Applegate is a volunteer. We got
to Milbauer, who's walk manager for the Walk to End
(11:02):
Alzheimer's coming up in late September. So we'll get to that, Julie.
I promise you, Julie, we're going to get to it.
It's happening. We've got a lot of time here. It's
a half hour long show. The other question that Mark
you gave a partial answer to before I even asked
the question, was you mentioned drugs coming down the pipeline.
There's been two FDA approved already, you mentioned hundreds more.
(11:23):
Are we at all close to figuring this thing out
or at least some of the iterations of this to
get a a I don't even want to use the
word cure, but I feel like that may be too hopeful.
But I mean, are we close to a cure of
some kind?
Speaker 4 (11:38):
We're definitely close when it was five years ago or
ten years ago the first time as a year or
two ago when la Keimby was first approved. We have
the first drug that would actually slow the progression. Previously,
all we've done is just kind of worked on the symptoms,
you know, the agitation that you can kind of there's
a couple drugs that have been approved for twenty years
(11:58):
that would kind of clear the mind a little bit
and stuff and that kind of thing. But yeah, I
really think that there will I don't know. Well, first
of all, since there's so many different causes and so
many different types, there isn't gonna be one single cure.
What will probably end up happening is we'll find ways
to keep pushing back the disease. You're, like I said
(12:18):
at the beginning, the most important risk factors the older
you get. So if person starts getting it at eighty,
if you could push it back ten, fifteen, twenty twenty
five years, then it's the equivalent of a cure. Because
something else I hate to be sad about it or
morbid about it, but something else is going to become
a bigger problem for a person one hundred years old
than the onset of Alzheimer's, which sometimes takes like my
(12:42):
mom fifteen years to work itself out, you know. So
I think there'll be a pushback to the point where
it's like a cure. There could also be individual types
that are cured. The problem is the brain is a
complex deal. It's got a nifty little mode around it,
the blood brain barrier to keep stuff from I'm getting
in that way. You know, if you if you get
(13:03):
a comic cold, doesn't get into your brain and kill
your brain. But it also works so good that it
keeps some meds out too, So there's it's trickier to
get meds. Plus not everyone's willing. I'm just you know,
I do. I'm the guinea pig on lots of clinical
studies because I've had so many cases in my family,
and I've done all the different things blood bar punctures
(13:23):
and pet scans and all these cognitive tests, but none
of them ask for volunteers to dig into your brain
take a chunk of brain out of study. So it's
studying something You're having to try to find other ways
to study. So the only people they get to get
chunks of brain to study, or people that are already
on a table to have something else done and they ask, hey,
can I have a slice or whatever? You know, and
(13:44):
or someone that's already dead, you know. That's so. Yeah,
it's just a hard disease to study. And these people
that I guinea pig for it at wash you and
at Vanderbilt in place like that are super super intelligent.
I my my IQ is room temperature compared to theirs.
I mean, it's just shocked how smart they are. I
feel like we're on the right track. And Alzheimer Associations
(14:05):
pumps tons of money into these studies, and it's their
budget is growing because people see the need, so more
money is getting put into the studies. I'm very optimistic.
I would not have said that when my mom was
diagnosed in two thousand and nine. I was super diagnosed,
super optimistic, But I'm I'm very optimistic now.
Speaker 1 (14:22):
Yeah, Julie, I'm curious working there at the Alzheimer's Association,
is there a feeling of optimism of hope, maybe more
now than there has been before.
Speaker 3 (14:31):
There really is.
Speaker 2 (14:32):
I've only been with the Association about a year and
a half, and I've been amazed at what I've seen happen.
Like Mark was talking about with the medications coming out
just in the time that I've been here. But I
just had a lunch the other day with John Berlin,
who's a big part of our organization and our executive director.
They attended the aai C conference, which is one of
the biggest conferences on Alzheimer's research, and they were both
(14:56):
so pumped about what they learned. The researchers they got
to talk to the progression that they've made in looking
at prevention as well as, you know, being able to
slow it down and eventually hopefully finding a way to
have a cure, and they just felt like that it's
right there on the custom They've made so much progress.
Speaker 1 (15:16):
That's fantastic and really exciting to hear. I'm not alone
in saying that I've had family members Mark obviously here,
but also just within the area you mentioned one hundred
and twenty thousand I believe in Missouri folks who have
either are currently or Yeah. It's a huge number. And
one other part of this has to do with folks
(15:38):
like me and Mark and those who have family members
or friends that aren't affected by this. I'm curious to
what the support looks like from you all the raising
of money funding studies. Clearly that's working. But there's a
whole other side to what the Alzheimer's Association does, and
that's get in rooms with people. What does that look
(15:58):
like like? What kind of support are you guys offering
for what you do for the public.
Speaker 4 (16:02):
So I as a volunteer, one thing I've done and
the Association trained me on how to do this some
time ago. Now it's been not long after her my
mom's symptoms started getting being worse. I facilitate support groups.
We have a sport group in Springfield that meets norma
meets the fourth Tuesday of the month. This month is
gonna beet the third Tuesday, but we have and it's
it's grown to having twenty five or thirty people. I
(16:26):
have five different support groups, including one that's on zoom,
and I'm gonna be adding.
Speaker 1 (16:29):
More of them soon.
Speaker 4 (16:31):
There's other ones like me, a lot of other ones
like me in Missouri that have been trained by the
Association that do a monthly support group. They also have
a one hundred number that's it's twenty four to seven
and it's not staffed by people that have a spreadsheet.
Speaker 1 (16:47):
They have to look around.
Speaker 4 (16:47):
Okay, now they ask for this or that, Especially people
that are clinical clinician level folks that know what they're
talking about. They have answers for the things you're gonna have.
So if a person has at three am, if they
if they're love one's wandering around, they haven't ever wandered
around before, and they're trying to get out of the house,
but they're not really worried about them running away where
they need to call nine to one one but they
don't know really what to do. They can call the
(17:08):
one a hindred number at the Alzheimer Association and get
a good answer, get a good quick answer that's free,
and that's so that's that's a big part of the
support too. The education classes are good too. We do
education classes all over those arcs I'm and several different
We do ten warning science presentations, We do what to
do when there's certain behaviors presentations. We have resource fairs
(17:31):
and stuff like that. But the sad part about the
whole deal is a lot of people that give the disease,
their loved one stays home with them. They're afraid to
go out because they might make a mistake, or they
might wonder why or they might something and they just
basically sit there sadly alone. And that's not good for them.
It's not good for their brains, not good for the
caregiver either, the caregiver. A lot of times we'll get
(17:52):
I mean, the percentage of caregivers that are twenty four
to seven caregivers they get sick themselves is high. I
forget the number, but it's shockingly high. In fact, a
lot of times they end up passing away before the
person of dementia oh wow, because the stress is so much.
They're they're sleeping with one eye open, you know, and
and and there are already a lot of times in
their seventies or eighties or nineties, and and then there's
(18:13):
a fall or whatever, you know, and there are supports limited.
So I worked for all the area Agency on Aging.
We do a bunch of stuff also for the for
these folks as well. But even between our company, which
we have thirty seven senior centers in those arcs and
Alzheimers Association, the demand should be tremendous because the numbers,
but a lot of them, unfortunately are either don't know
(18:35):
or or don't utilize.
Speaker 1 (18:38):
Yeah, I remember with my grandfather it was pride, you know,
it was a not wanting to admit it, and then
it was a fight. I mean it was it was
a fight every time between him and my mom, who
ended up.
Speaker 4 (18:54):
With seeing an nazis we can be this thing, you know,
I totally get it. Yeah, you know, well it's it's
yourself by your bootstraps generation.
Speaker 1 (19:02):
Yeah. Absolutely, And it's great to know that there is
support out there for not just folks who have a
variation of Alzheimer's at dementia, but also the people who
are caring for them and exciting to hear some hope
moving forward, maybe with some potential medical fixes, which is
really cool. So talking with Mark Applegate and Julie Milbauert
from the Alzheimer's Association, We've got a walk coming up,
(19:26):
and Julie, I know you're the manager of this walk,
tell me a little bit. Well, first of all, let's
just get the logistics out of the way, the when,
the where, who, you know, all that stuff. Let's do
that and then let's dive in a little bit deeper.
Speaker 2 (19:41):
Okay, absolutely, Our walk in Springfield is going to be
on Saturday, September twenty eighth over at Jordan Valley, Park.
Speaker 3 (19:49):
We'll start with registration at seven.
Speaker 2 (19:51):
Thirty in the morning, and the walk will start with
an opening ceremony about nine o'clock. Ethan Fourhees has been
our MC for that event now for many many years,
so we you know, invite everybody.
Speaker 3 (20:04):
You know a lot of us.
Speaker 2 (20:05):
A lot of the people who come come because they're caregivers,
they've lost somebody, people who've.
Speaker 3 (20:11):
Been recently diagnosed.
Speaker 2 (20:13):
But I encourage everybody because you know, I fight this
fight because I don't want to have a family member
that gets that diagnosis. I've met so many people along
the way in this last year and a half and
the stories from caregivers, I mean, Mark's right, what they're
putting theirselves through and the little support that they get.
(20:34):
Often I want to see us in this. So we
have a wonderful ceremony out there. We had last year
about eleven hundred people joined us over there at the park.
It's not a real long walk. Oftentimes people say, oh,
but I can't do the walk. Come join us anyway,
you can sit enjoy the ceremony. There's we have a
lot of our sponsors that have booths out there with
(20:54):
different information.
Speaker 1 (20:55):
Sure besides being a tremendous show of support for those
going through this. Does it help in other ways too?
Speaker 2 (21:05):
Yes, The Walked into Alzheimer's is the largest fundraisers for
the Alzheimer's Association. We do over six hundred walks across
the country. I actually am responsible for the Springfield, Joplin,
and Lake of the Ozark walks, so that is our
biggest fundraiser. They can actually sign up online and register
themselves or their team. There's an app that they can
(21:26):
track their progress in, and you know, it's just it's
how we fund all of this that we do, and
it's important to know that some that's going back into
our community. You know, research is the utmost because we
want to find the cure, but it also helps fund
those scenes that Mark talked about as far as education
and support groups and being able to provide resources.
Speaker 1 (21:47):
I know I went to your website earlier before this,
because I do a good thirty seconds of research before
I record these shows, guys, so I'm totally prepared. But
what was encouraging to see is there on the main
page there is a goal tracker for money raise for
the Walk to End Alzheimer's and we are less than
(22:07):
two months but closer to two months than to one
from the walk coming up on the twenty eighth of September,
and you guys are about just over halfway to the goal,
which is really inspiring to see. Do you tend to
see that pick up or slow down as you get closer.
I know different fundraisers see different results when it comes
to trying to make that goal.
Speaker 2 (22:28):
I'm fully confident this will pick up before we reach.
If you notice, right now, we've only got about two
hundred and seventy four people signed up for it. I
fully anticipate we will have eleven or twelve hundred by
the time it comes walk day, and with those participants
typically we see the increase in the funding as well.
Speaker 1 (22:46):
Yeah. So September twenty eighth, Jordan Valley Park. If you
want to get more information or register yourself or a team,
as you mentioned, what is the right place to go,
and that.
Speaker 3 (23:01):
To get directly to the Springfield Walk, they can go
to alz dot org slash Springfield mo Walk.
Speaker 1 (23:09):
Okay, awesome. And then if it's just the alz dot
org day, remember it's pretty easy to navigate to find
information Springfield.
Speaker 3 (23:16):
Local right absolutely, And.
Speaker 1 (23:18):
You mentioned you do Joplin, Lake of the Ozarks, and
us here in Springfield. Which one's better? I'm kidding the
answer that.
Speaker 3 (23:27):
Well, Springfield is definitely the largest.
Speaker 1 (23:29):
I would hope, so, I mean just based on population alone,
but you never know. And it's like asking me to
pick a favorite kid. Although I'm sure you've seen them
running around to the background here. I have two of them,
and some days I do have favorites.
Speaker 3 (23:43):
I get that I have a few more than.
Speaker 1 (23:45):
That, but I get that we've gone I don't know,
six or seven minutes left here, so we've done really,
really good. I did want to ask in Mark, I
think I know the answer to this, but I always
like to know, and I feel like it drives home
just how important this pause is when you hear personal stories.
So I'll go to both of you. Mark, you mentioned
(24:05):
parents that have had Alzheimer's the diagnosis. Is that what
got you in?
Speaker 3 (24:11):
Like?
Speaker 1 (24:11):
What was the driving force that got you involved with
the Alzheimer's Association? Why do you continue to do it?
Speaker 4 (24:17):
Yeah, that's definitely what got me involved. So my my
grandmother had the disease twenty five years ago, wonderful lady.
Her her husband was a car dealer, and when she
bring him. He'd bring home new cars to her all
the time, and she'd take us to school on a
different car every day, and sometimes she would turn out
of the highway and she'd peel out on accident because
(24:39):
she wasn't used to the car. And she's like eighty
at the time. You know, we just loved it that her.
She's just an absolute favorite. And and got the disease,
and we'd lost her long before we lost her health wise.
We lost her metally too, and it was just tragic.
And then my mom and I two thousand and nine
developed it. We should have known better at that time
when they they gave us a diagnosis, but we really
didn't start watching getting real serious until we started seeing
(25:02):
the signs more. And that was a few more years.
But she was in nursing home from twenty eighteen until
she passed away on July second. I told her at
the time, you know, when we had to put a
nursing home, I said, I'll do everything I can to
find a cure over the years, and I'll do the
best I can to help other people because she's she
(25:22):
was always the type that would help other people that
also had the disease because she knew a lot about
it too, So yeah, that's definitely driving force. And that's
one of the neat things about the walk too. You
go to the walk, and I won't give away the
secret sauce of all the different stuff about it, but
you see on the homepage of these pictures holding up
these flowers. You go to the Jordan Valley Park and
all these flowers are spinning the wind and stuff like that.
(25:44):
But each color, each color flower matches why you're in
for the disease or what interest you have, and you see,
you know I have. I had an interest of yellow,
and I had an interest of purple. Based on what
those things mean. I'm not gonna give away because it's
one of the neat things about going there. Seeing two
hundred or four hundred and six hundred other people with
the same color flower spinning in the wind. It really
(26:06):
gives you an encouragement to know that you're not alone.
And it was a huge blessing to me, for sure.
It always has been a huge blessing to me. I
go to multiple walks.
Speaker 1 (26:14):
Yeah, you mentioned she was a walker out in Republic.
I know she would have loved it. When we finally
got this. I'm just right down the block here in Republic,
And I know she would have loved the new trail
around the new aquatic center of the Rush here and
just watching those kids. I'd love driving by it all
the time and watching the kids just having a blast.
I'm sure she would have loved that too, Absolutely, absolutely.
Speaker 4 (26:36):
She used to walk all over town and stuff and
always she's one of the hiker type two and stuff.
Speaker 1 (26:41):
Yeah, well, thanks for sharing that, Mark, I appreciate it. Julie,
what about you? What has you so involved with the
Alzheimer's Association that you couldn't help but work for it?
Speaker 2 (26:51):
You know? Well, I've always had a love of helping
people and giving back to the community. I've been in
nonprofit for over thirty years. When I found this role,
it was it was important to me. Like I said,
I have not been struck personally. I do have an
ex mother in law who recently was just moved to
(27:12):
Springfield from Nebraska. I've seen her a couple of times,
and it's it's very challenging to see knowing what she
was and who she's become and how it's affected her
family and her children. But really it's about it's about
helping people. The stories I hear going out. You know,
I spent many years working with at risk youth, and
(27:35):
people say, what, you know, it's quite a difference, but
it's not. It's it's these stories are just as heartbreaking.
And you know, we spoke earlier about the caregivers, and
I met a couple families out in Willard this week
when I attended a support group, and my heart just
breaks form for the way things have had to change
in their lives, and I just want to do everything
(27:56):
I can to make make a difference in that.
Speaker 1 (27:58):
Absolutely, we have been so lucky to have you guys
both share your knowledge, your passion, also the information about
not just the Alzheimer's Association, what that looks like, the
supported offers here in the Ozarks, but also the Walk
to End Holzheimer's coming up on the twenty eighth of September.
One more time with how to get involved with the
(28:20):
walk and then maybe somehow to just get involved with
the Alzheimer's Association. You know, if somebody does hear this
and they're finding themselves touched in some way by this disease,
the best way to go ahead and start reaching out
for that support. So let's do the walk information first,
then let's do the other one next.
Speaker 2 (28:38):
Sure well join us on Saturday, September twenty eighth at
Jordan Valley Park. You can register your team or as
an individual at alz dot org slash Springfield Mole Walk
or give me a call at four one seven nine
eight eight one oh one, and then general Alzheimer's information.
(28:59):
They can visit the website at alz dot org or
our eight hundred number is a tremendous resource eight hundred
two seven two three nine hundred. You can get answers
to just about anything related to Alzheimer's.
Speaker 1 (29:11):
That's fantastic. My thanks to you guys. You were fantastic.
Julie Milbauer, Mark Applegay, I told you it would go
by fast, isn't it?
Speaker 3 (29:18):
It did?
Speaker 4 (29:19):
Like?
Speaker 1 (29:19):
Why is he wrapping us up early? I'm not. In fact,
I'm fighting the clock right now to get this thing
in at the thirty minute mark here. But you guys
were fantastic. Thank you so much for doing this and
look forward to talking with you guys soon. Good luck
with the walk coming up and everything you guys are
doing sounds like a lot, but it also sounds like
it's needed. So thank you, guys, Thank you.
Speaker 3 (29:37):
We appreciate it.
Speaker 1 (29:39):
Thank you. By the way, who is listening now to this?
If you're only catching part of it, you can go
back and listen anytime. Just search Ihearttheosarks on our iHeartRadio app.
For myself, Clint Gurley, the rest of our staff here
at iHeartRadio and Springfield, thank you so much for listening,
and have a great rest of your day.
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