Linda Rodezno, Caregiver, Volunteer Advocate, Blogger for the Alzheimer’s Association
During National Volunteer Week and all year long, we wish to celebrate the stories of our dedicated and hard-working volunteers. This is the story of Linda Rodezno, Caregiver, volunteer advocate, blogger for the Alzheimer’s Association:
The path to volunteering with the Alzheimer’s Association started for me 5 years ago, when I received an email from a cousin. He had run into my mother while shopping in downtown Santa Tecla, El Salvador. Mom had gotten lost and could not find her way home. My sister and I caught a red-eye to El Salvador and brought her and Dad back home with us. A few months later, Mom was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s and Dad with Parkinson’s with Lewy Body Disease. Caring for one loved one with dementia is demanding; caring for two at the same time has been physically, emotionally, and financially challenging. It didn’t take long for my family to realize how limited our caregiving resources were: thank God for the Alzheimer’s Association! What started as a quest to learn more about my parents’ disease and how to care for them, has turned into a personal mission to bring more awareness to Alzheimer’s and related neurological diseases. I recognize it’s too late for my parents: we lost Dad last year. But it’s not too late for you, me, or future generations. We just need a strong investment in research. Without it all we have is hope. This is why I volunteer and advocate for the Alzheimer’s Association.
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