October 27, 2025 • 36 mins
The Promenade at Piedmont Park turned into a surge of color, courage, and hope at the Walk to End Alzheimer’s hosted by the Atlanta chapter of the Alzheimer's Association—and we brought our cameras and team to capture it all. From the first cheers to the last hug, we connected with caregivers, researchers, and supporters who refuse to let this disease define our futures. As a media sponsor, Parenting Up! dug into practical takeaways and lifted the voices that make this movement real.
We spoke with a variety of advocates - caregivers and families honoring parents and partners, and supporters who showed up with empathy even without a personal connection. We spoke with Dr. Levey of Emory’s research team who laid out why deep sleep, daily movement, and social connection can reduce risk, how accurate blood tests are transforming early detection, and why new medications that slow progression mark a true turning point. We also talk candidly about clinical trials—why enrollment lags far behind cancer, what’s at stake for prevention studies, and how a strong trial culture can accelerate breakthroughs for everyone.
Throughout the day, small moments carry big meaning: the flower garden of colors, a little girl holding the white flower that symbolizes the first survivor, and the reminder that empowerment programs help people live well with ability, not just diagnosis. The crowd’s energy makes one thing clear—joy is a strategy, and community is a form of care. If you’re a caregiver, a person living with dementia, or an ally ready to do something that matters, this conversation brings both hope and marching orders.
Walk with us, learn with us, and help move the science forward—subscribe, share this episode with someone who needs it, and consider joining a clinical trial or local chapter event. Your step might be the one that brings the white flower into bloom.
Visit Alz.org for more information and check us out at parentingup.com.
Executive Producer/Host: J Smiles
Producer: Mia Hall
Videographer/Editor: Annelise Udoye
"Alzheimer's is heavy but we ain't gotta be!"
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Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
SPEAKER_10 (00:00):
I am standing in Piedmont Park at the world's
largest Alzheimer's event.
Why is it the largest?
It's because the walk to endAlzheimer's happens all over the
country at the same time, moreor less, right?
SPEAKER_01 (00:17):
Today, we are actually a media sponsor.
Jay Smiles is out there raisingawareness.
She reaches a community ofcaregivers that we may not be
able to reach on our own.
So the more awareness we canraise, the better.
On top of that, you know,caregiving and Alzheimer's and
dementia can be so heavy.
(00:39):
And she really shows people thatlike you can you can laugh.
You can still live, you canstill laugh, and you can still
enjoy life as much as you can,and that's just so important.
It's such an important part ofcaregiving.
SPEAKER_02 (00:54):
So one of the things that's most important, we think,
is that it's estimated about40-45% of Alzheimer's disease
must be preventable.
And the way we can prevent it isby having people do things that
are going to promote healthybehaviors.
Sleep is one of the mostimportant things.
Getting a good night's sleep,slow-weight sleep, enhances our
(01:18):
memory, and clears out thosetoxic amyloid flaps and
neurofibrillar candles in ourbrain.
So sleep is really critical.
SPEAKER_10 (01:27):
Parenting up caregiving adventures with
comedian Jay Smiles is theintense journey of unexpectedly
being fully responsible for mymama.
For over a decade, I've beenchipping away at the unknown,
advocating for her, and pushingAlzheimer's awareness on anyone
and anything with a heartbeat.
SPEAKER_08 (01:52):
That's why I died, don't die.
Don't be ready for the joke.
SPEAKER_10 (01:57):
Caregiver newbies, OGs, and village members just
willing to prop up a caregiver.
You are in the right place.
Hi, this is ready.
I hope you enjoy my daughter'spodcast.
SPEAKER_12 (02:15):
Is that okay?
SPEAKER_10 (02:20):
Today's supporter shout out is two people.
Libby and Leslie of Alzheimer'sAssociation of the Rockin'
Georgia chapter.
SPEAKER_01 (02:29):
Jay Smiles is out there raising awareness.
She reaches a community ofcaregivers that we may not be
able to reach on our own.
So the more awareness we canraise, the better.
On top of that, you know,caregiving and Alzheimer's and
dementia can be so heavy.
And she really shows people thatlike you can you can laugh.
(02:52):
You can still live, you canstill laugh, and you can still
enjoy life as much as you can,and that's just so important.
It's such an important part ofcaregiving.
So it's just really cool thatshe is in this middle where she
gets it and she is raisingawareness and she's just showing
caregivers like it's okay andyou're not alone.
SPEAKER_06 (03:15):
She's amazing.
First of all, her spirit and herenergy, of course, is amazing.
Um, she did one of ourpre-interviews, which is a big
um benefit to our sponsors whoget to have some airtime.
And um one of the pre-interviewsthat we did with our research
tent in with Emory University,and that was so impactful.
Um, the entire crowd had stoppedto hear what what they were
(03:37):
saying, and it was just really,really great.
Not to mention she's you knowjumping in around and
interacting with the crowd allday.
It was amazing.
We're really thankful to haveher.
SPEAKER_10 (03:47):
Now you know you want to get a support shout out
too.
I know you do, I know you do,and you should know what to do.
Leave a review on ApplePodcasts, YouTube, or Instagram.
We are at parenting upeverywhere.
(04:08):
What's up, family?
It's your girl Jay Smile, and Iam standing in PowerPark at the
world's largest Alzheimer'sevent.
Why is it the largest?
It's because the walk-to-inAlzheimer's happened all over
the country at the same time,more or less, right?
Today, we are actually a mediasponsor.
(04:33):
Community.
We got a kid and all kinds offancy stuff.
We got giveaways.
So many people trying to fightand beat this disease.
We met people living with whatthey call young Alzheimer's.
We met people who have familymembers that die from
(04:53):
Alzheimer's on both sides.
Can you imagine that?
Anyway, we're out here.
Today is about joy, awareness,and advocacy.
The joy is that we have acommunity that is willing to
fight this thing.
Yes.
SPEAKER_04 (05:11):
Good morning.
Good morning, like we're gonnatake a few minutes to bring
information of the biggestperson here.
SPEAKER_11 (05:26):
Thank you, Ben.
SPEAKER_10 (05:27):
Thank you.
Good morning, all cyber spiderteam.
The weather is on our side, andright now that makes me feel
good.
I'm very smiling of theparenting of the podcast.
We are one of the mediasponsors.
(05:47):
My mother was the most earlysponsors about 14 years ago.
I'm a very caregiver, andbecause of it, I started a
podcast to support familycaregivers.
So what we say is humor.
We lead with benefits, and nomatter what, until there's a
(06:11):
cure, we can lock arms andsupport each other across the
globe.
So one time for the all-sizeassociation.
Now we want to hear some realdata and science and stuff.
SPEAKER_11 (06:29):
Dr.
SPEAKER_10 (06:31):
is with every stuff about you know legends and
things and dad.
SPEAKER_08 (06:40):
How are you?
SPEAKER_02 (06:41):
I am great, and I'm so happy to be here.
Thank you, Jay.
This is fabulous.
What a great turnout.
Um, you want to hear aboutending Alzheimer's disease?
Who's gonna walk today to endthis disease?
That's our goal.
We certainly have a lot ofcaregiving to do and caregiving
(07:02):
research to do, um, but we're onthe walk on the walk to end
Alzheimer's disease, and we havebeen making so much progress
over the last two years.
We have come hundreds of milesgetting closer.
Some of the research that'songoing now is actually testing
things that might be able toprevent Alzheimer's disease.
And we'll know in the next yearor two whether some of the
(07:23):
things that we're now treatingpatients with are actually going
to be effective for preventingthe disease.
So we're getting there.
SPEAKER_11 (07:32):
I love that so much.
Can you give us a littleinformation with some of the
research that's excited aboutthere's there's a lot that I'm
excited about.
SPEAKER_02 (07:49):
Um, right here behind me, we have our sleep
research team and who's outhere.
So one of the things that's mostimportant, we think, is that
it's estimated about 40-45% ofAlzheimer's might be
preventable.
And the way we can prevent it isby having people do things that
are going to promote healthybehavior.
(08:10):
Sleep is one of the mostimportant things.
Getting a good night's sleep,low-weight sleep, enhances our
memory, and clears out thosetoxic amyloid plaques and
neurofibrillary cannabis in ourbrain.
So sleep is really critical.
How do you get good sleep?
You do things to promote goodsleep, like exercise, have a
(08:35):
good diet, have good socialinteractions during the day.
And so those are the types ofhealthy lifestyles that are
gonna end Alzheimer's diseasefor many, many people.
SPEAKER_11 (08:47):
Oh my goodness, as a family caregiver, I'm urged in
sleep losing if I try to walkout the house.
Okay, all right, we would have alot of people.
SPEAKER_10 (09:06):
But thank you for giving me our marketing orders.
SPEAKER_11 (09:11):
Now, we know there's a lot of research and trials
medication might work.
Can you explain to us why thosetrials really are important?
SPEAKER_02 (09:26):
Um, thank you for bringing that up.
We have so many ideas because ofthe advances of the research,
how medications can be moreeffective.
The biggest problem is gettingpeople to volunteer to test
medications to prevent thedisease, to slow the disease.
And so clinical trials andresearch is absolutely critical.
(09:51):
If you look at the progressthat's happened in fighting
cancer, which we know has beenspectacular, there are ten times
the number of clinical trialsand the culture is that people
with cancer get into a clinicaltrial.
We need to make that happen forAlzheimer's disease and related
to methods because we can gofaster on our you know race for
(10:12):
a cure.
SPEAKER_11 (10:13):
Thank you.
SPEAKER_02 (10:31):
One is early detection.
Our ability to help rest onidentifying people in early
stages, not waiting for them togo through a difficult journey
of years and stress trying tofind a diagnosis.
We now have a blood test, whichis very accurate.
So what a transformation becausewe can think about screening
(10:52):
people and finding the diseaseas early as it starts.
Second thing is we can dosomething with new medications.
Over the last couple years,we've had our first medicines
that can slow down the progressof the disease.
That is huge.
That is the first step on ourfactor appearance.
SPEAKER_10 (11:11):
Did you all hear blood tests?
I would like a round of applausefor whoever made it that simple.
I could probably almost test myknew it, but I probably could.
SPEAKER_11 (11:25):
Now, lastly, what can you give us as caregivers
and those who've been diagnosed?
SPEAKER_10 (11:36):
That could be a thing today.
Some of the big model.
SPEAKER_02 (11:44):
We have this phenomenal program called the
Cognitive Empowerment Program,and it helps educate people
about the lifestyle changes theycan make to embrace other
abilities.
Having a disease likeAlzheimer's disease doesn't mean
you're robbed of all abilities.
It's about how do we empowerpeople, take advantage of the
(12:06):
gifts that we have, the socialinteractions, our families, our
friends, and keep ourselves ashealthy as possible and enjoy
the best quality of life.
So there are things we can do.
We need to get people engaged,diagnosed, and get them the
services they need.
SPEAKER_10 (12:22):
That's it.
You heard from the best of thebest.
Let's give a round of applausefor Dr.
Lee, for Aerie, for the allkinds of associations.
Together, we can beat this.
SPEAKER_02 (12:42):
You're welcome.
Thank you.
One of the things that we needto do.
SPEAKER_13 (13:05):
I am the PRC.
Don't have me to see my hurt.
She's got great work.
I'm not doing this morning andall this for people living in
the future.
SPEAKER_10 (13:19):
You know, just trying to do some good in the
world.
You've been doing good, baby.
Look, she is playing herselfnow.
She does so much research for usand our community.
So I got this all the time.
SPEAKER_13 (13:29):
That's why we got so much.
SPEAKER_10 (13:32):
She's at Emery.
She's a PhD, okay?
I'm not.
I'm a bullshit talker, but I'mgood at it.
We need the real mix with theresearch, right?
Absolutely, sweetheart.
Wait, better now.
Are you kidding me?
I know, right?
Wait, is that still on?
SPEAKER_05 (13:53):
Is that still on?
SPEAKER_10 (13:54):
Yeah, hey.
This is the guy.
He's been on the podcastalready.
Dan, look, it rhyme with turkey.
I know you it's G-O-E-R-K-E.
It's a mess.
SPEAKER_07 (14:07):
Tell the name of your book.
You're beautiful.
Unforgettable, unbelievable.
I wrote a memoir of mycaretaking journey with my wife,
Denise, who was diagnosed whenshe was just 56.
Anyway, it's out there.
Buy it.
It's on Amazon.
This lady is wonderful, anamazing lady.
Thank you for what you do.
(14:29):
Same here.
SPEAKER_10 (14:29):
And listen, this part is, it's, I'm gonna say it,
and don't y'all judge.
But let me tell you how badasshe is.
His wife has been an angel foryears, and he is still trying to
fight with us in this communityto get um a cure.
SPEAKER_07 (14:49):
Yeah.
SPEAKER_10 (14:50):
So once a caregiver, always a caregiver, right, Dan?
SPEAKER_07 (14:53):
Absolutely.
You are awesome.
SPEAKER_10 (14:55):
Dan was at the recording of my first comedy
special.
So we go together.
We go together, go together.
unknown (15:04):
All right.
SPEAKER_10 (15:07):
In the dementia Alzheimer's community, yellow
means you're a caregiver or asupporter of caregivers.
So what up, though?
All my yellow people.
Thank you for being a yellowperson.
I'm Jay Smiles.
I'm one of the media sponsorshere.
Okay.
Have Parenting Up Podcast.
Nice to meet you.
(15:28):
Ann Chicago.
Okay.
Hey, how you doing?
It's a pleasure.
But I did see you out at thetent.
Yep.
Yep.
Yep.
How is awesome?
Come on, my dad.
But in the early stages ofawesome and just before time.
But she kinda, you know, hasbeen like the forerun.
Yeah.
At the forefront of, hey, let'sdo this, let's donate, and let's
(15:51):
come out and walk.
And so I'm trying to piggybackon her when it comes to
attending me.
So I'm part of her team.
We are supporting my room.
We gotta have team Ali.
I'll be on her team next year.
Why not?
That's right.
I'm on her team right now.
And parenting up, we can mergeand do everything.
(16:12):
Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah.
I love it.
It's a pleasure to meet you all.
SPEAKER_05 (16:19):
Thank you.
14 years.
SPEAKER_10 (16:21):
14 years.
And she bless her heart.
She's not talking much anymore,but she can still chew.
She can walk-ish.
And if I call her name, shelooks around.
And that's all.
I just need if I say mama andshe does like this, that's good
enough.
I'm like, she knows that's myvoice.
(16:43):
All right, good to see y'allagain.
Yeah, yeah, yeah.
What's your name, honey?
Taylor.
Taylor.
SPEAKER_03 (16:48):
Yes.
SPEAKER_10 (16:49):
What's up with the shirt?
SPEAKER_03 (16:50):
So I was looking for a shirt to kind of like
represent how I feel, and that'show I feel, and I'm doing this
for my mom.
Okay.
SPEAKER_10 (16:57):
Your mom?
SPEAKER_03 (16:58):
Yeah, my mother, yeah.
SPEAKER_10 (16:59):
She is she currently battling the disease?
SPEAKER_03 (17:00):
Yeah, she is.
She is.
Okay.
SPEAKER_10 (17:02):
How old is she?
SPEAKER_03 (17:03):
She will be 65 in two weeks.
Actually, a week and a half.
SPEAKER_10 (17:08):
She was diagnosed kind of early.
SPEAKER_03 (17:10):
Uh, maybe like a year, two years.
Actually, two, three years ago.
Yeah.
Okay.
Yeah.
SPEAKER_10 (17:14):
And for anybody, if you can't see it, it's F U, and
then I love that the ribbon forAlzheimer's is on the side.
It's on the side horizontal.
So it's really he's saying fuckAlzheimer's.
Without putting a C in the K.
SPEAKER_03 (17:32):
Right, right.
SPEAKER_10 (17:32):
Where'd you get that from?
SPEAKER_03 (17:33):
Actually, Amazon.
SPEAKER_10 (17:34):
Okay, listen, sometimes Amazon works.
Yeah, sometimes it does.
SPEAKER_03 (17:38):
It does.
SPEAKER_10 (17:38):
But so this is your first time doing the walk?
SPEAKER_03 (17:41):
It's my first time, yes.
SPEAKER_10 (17:43):
Well, please join us on the Parents and Up Podcast.
I would love to have you on thepodcast.
I've been caring for my mom for14 years.
SPEAKER_03 (17:51):
Okay.
SPEAKER_10 (17:51):
And the Parents and Up Podcast, our 10 is right over
there where you can see the bigbanners.
Okay.
We got some giveaways.
Okay.
SPEAKER_03 (17:58):
I'll be over here.
SPEAKER_10 (18:00):
Uh a power pack, but most importantly, we use humor
and levity to keep familycaregivers like me and you
uplifted.
SPEAKER_03 (18:09):
I appreciate that.
Thank you.
SPEAKER_10 (18:10):
Yeah, yeah, yeah.
Thank you.
Nice to meet you.
Nice to meet you as well.
All right.
Listen, we're out here.
We're out here.
How has Alzheimer's impactedyou?
So I've not had any directeffect other than I forget where
I put my phone and my keys.
So who knows what's happening?
Honey, listen.
So I'm just walking to supportany and all.
(18:32):
I love that.
And thank you.
Absolutely.
So, like I said earlier, I'mwith the Parenting Up Podcast.
My mom has had Alzheimer's for14 years.
And my whole goal is to supportfamily caregivers with humor and
leave with levity.
Yes.
This disease totally sucks.
And until there's a cure, we canat least be able to lean on each
(18:55):
other.
SPEAKER_13 (18:56):
Absolutely.
So I am supporting my siblings.
My uh sister is deceased.
Um, you know, effects ofAlzheimer's.
My brother is currently in theuh late stages of Alzheimer's.
So I know the disease wellfirsthand from being a caregiver
(19:16):
and that support system.
So that's why my shirt says I'llremember for you.
SPEAKER_10 (19:22):
Oh, I love that.
SPEAKER_09 (19:25):
I'll remember for you.
Okay, so my name is Sophia.
I am walking in support.
I don't have any directdescendants of um Alzheimer's.
Yes, but I am a Mahjongenthusiast, and um Mahjong is
proven by science to prevent orprolong the effects of
(19:46):
Alzheimer's.
It builds memory and things ofthat nature.
So I am hoping to get morepeople that look like me, black
and brown people, into the gamebecause it is a proven fact that
it keeps Alzheimer's away.
SPEAKER_10 (20:04):
I want you to teach me.
Did you live in Land?
SPEAKER_09 (20:06):
Absolutely.
Yes, we have a group, BlackGirls Mahjong 2.
SPEAKER_10 (20:09):
We'll have all y'all, you and your group will
be on the podcast.
Look, at least two or threetimes for us to get an idea of
what the hell we're doing.
That mahjong, it scares me.
SPEAKER_09 (20:22):
You'll love it once you learn how to play, girl.
Well, I believe.
We have a group as well.
We have two different groupswhere one.
Okay.
Sisters play mahjong too.
SPEAKER_10 (20:35):
Sisters mahjong.
Sisters mahjong too.
Please go to the tent, put thaton, and on the back of your
piece of paper, put mahjong.
Okay.
That'll help me remember.
Absolutely.
I can't wait.
SPEAKER_04 (20:52):
We want to welcome you here to the walk to end
Alzheimer's.
And let me tell you, we aredeeply honored to be here with
you today on behalf of theAlzheimer's Associations for the
World.
SPEAKER_12 (21:02):
Of course, this is a part of my heart because my
grandfather, who will be 90years old in December, is
actually, you know, battlingthis disease.
He's has Alzheimer's.
So I'm his primary caretaker.
And when I tell you it has beena journey, so when I reached out
to the Alzheimer's Associationand we promoted on the show,
when we took calls from mymillions of listeners, and I
didn't know that people like mewere actually going through
(21:25):
this.
And so I felt like I'm not alonein this journey because I
thought that I was.
And thank God that I'm not.
So once again, I'm walking formy grandfather, uh, my
great-grandmother, and also mygrandmother who is uh battling
with this disease.
SPEAKER_00 (21:39):
I'm here to advocate for my father, his sister, their
father, and all of your family.
My father passed away in Marchof this year, and his sister
passed away last month when mygrandfather was diagnosed in the
late 90s.
It was a death sentence.
Vividly remember we didn't talkabout it, we didn't know what to
do about it, and uh, there was alot of confusion.
(22:01):
I wasn't aware of theassociation, I wasn't aware of
the support network.
I was young and confused, and myfather was diagnosed.
I found this association, Ifound strength, I found wisdom,
and I found education.
Um things have changed rapidly,but it was too late for my
father.
Today things have changeddramatically for those of you
getting diagnosed.
I have friends who are on someof the drugs that are available
(22:23):
now.
The FDA is released.
There's finally hope.
Unbelievable how close we are toputting this thing to rest.
SPEAKER_04 (24:03):
There's also a white flower.
And I'm confident that one daywe will be able to add this
white flower to the garden thatwill represent the first
survivor of all times.
That will be such an incredibleaddition to the garden, but
(24:23):
until that day, we can't backdown, y'all.
We must continue to lead the waybecause together we can end
Alzheimer's.
SPEAKER_10 (25:05):
Nice sky.
Meaning it's not too hot, it'snot too cold, and then there are
about 2,500 people who are onyour team.
We are standing right here atthe 2025 Walk to End
Alzheimer's.
Now, this is sponsored by theGeorgia chapter, but it's
(25:26):
happening all over the place.
Y'all, we have cheerleaders fromGeorgia Tech helping us learn
how to not cheer and leave thatto people who are much younger
than us.
I'm gonna tell you that.
What they were doing, I can't dothat.
We have people from B103, wehave people from news, multiple
radio stations, making sure thatthe word gets out.
(25:50):
There are people who arefighting hard as hell to beat
this disease.
I met one lady where she gotdiagnosed two years ago and
she's not even 60.
It's considered youngAlzheimer's.
It's not even quite early onset,and she's one of the very few
ambassadors that the Alzheimer'sAssociation has used to be a
(26:14):
spokesperson across the nation.
Your girl got to get on stagewith a yellow flower.
What we learned today waswhether you're a caregiver, a
survivor, lost somebody to thedisease, a corporate sponsor,
you get a different colorflower.
(26:36):
So it felt like we were in aworld of tulips and daisies
because everybody at theappropriate times like jumped up
and down with their flowers.
It was so colorful and it was sobeautiful.
There are at least 15 differentfacilities who are here sharing
what they do for loved ones,family members who are suffering
(27:01):
with any form of dementia.
Parkinson's, frontal, uh,temporal dementia, vascular
dementia.
But these are care centers thatvery specifically only want
people suffering with dementia.
Emory University was here.
They had this huge research tenttelling us what they're doing to
(27:22):
move the needle.
The biggest thing, one of themost prominent people, um, Dr.
Levy, in all of the country whenit comes to neurology and
science and thinking this, allthe dementia-related things out,
he told us we gotta get in moreclinical trials.
Did y'all know that?
(27:42):
Like, unfortunately, cancer isbeating our ass.
10 to 1 with participants inclinical trials.
Now, that helps them get totreatments and a cure.
We haven't gotten to a cure yet.
I learned today that the colorwhite, a white flower, is
(28:05):
symbolic.
We are fighting to wait and seewhen will we have the first
survivor of Alzheimer's?
A person who is diagnosed, butthen the disease is reversed or
it vanishes.
The number of people who startedcrying and cheering at the
thought of when will we get thefirst survivor?
(28:30):
My heart started beating fast.
To me, it felt like having thefirst black president or having
uh the first woman do something,or the first time the Cowboys
won the Super Bowl.
I'm just saying, you know, bigfancy first.
(28:50):
Researchers, kids.
The cutest thing ever, thislittle girl could barely walk.
She had on a fit that was sodamn adorable.
It was Alzheimer's.
She had purple pom-poms, and shewas the symbolic holder of the
white flower.
(29:11):
She was blowing purple bubbles.
There was so much joy andhappiness around us on this big
old football field.
We had two different lengths ofthe walk.
There was a 1.5 distance and a2.5 distance miles.
1.5 miles, 2.5 miles.
And there were people inwheelchairs, power wheelchairs,
(29:35):
and some people were gettingpushed.
You see what I'm saying?
That is serious.
You talking about commitment tosupport.
You are in a wheelchair gettingpushed to fight for other people
while you are alreadypotentially in a compromised
physical state.
(29:56):
It was so amazing.
I have I've never met so manypeople supporting a disease that
they didn't have a connectionto.
I met at least five people whohaven't had a family member, a
coworker, or anybody have anyform of dementia.
(30:19):
You know why they're here?
Because they have empathy, theyare reading the news, they're
watching stuff on social media,and they're getting involved
simply because advocacy is whatyou do to make humanity better.
It blew me away.
(30:41):
How many things do you fight forthat have not ever affected you?
Now you're talking about heart.
That's big heart.
That's big heart.
So we had calisthenics, that'ssuch an old school world.
We were stretching.
They got porta potties with handsanitizer, there smoothies,
(31:04):
chicken and waffles, yeah, foodcarts at the Alzheimer's walk to
end the disease.
It's been a great day.
There are all every gender,every race, at least eight
(31:29):
generations.
Congratulations, Alzheimer'sAssociation.
Congratulations on putting onthe biggest, most productive,
most financially um let's saysomething.
They raised the most money andgot the most people out here
that they've ever done.
(31:50):
In a time when our country andour world is starving for
community and the lack of hate.
We found it today.
So I'm happy.
So I'm so very happy.
I'm right now thinking about mygrandfather who died from the
(32:10):
disease, and my poor mama'sdaddy, which is the reason why.
I'm a caregiver, I got apodcast, and I'm a comedian.
And then look, we pucked outsome new merch, y'all.
Alright, so if you if youlisten, you're gonna have to go
to the YouTube page to look atit.
Let me know what you think.
But we for the first time, wegot front and back on our gear.
(32:39):
Thank y'all, thank y'all, thanky'all.
Please like, share, get in thecomments, get in the DMs.
Tell me what else I can do tohelp support you and those you
know who are family caregivers.
Peace.
Grandgraddy.
Apparently, when I was little, Icouldn't say granddaddy, so I
(33:05):
said grandgraddy.
The snuggle up.
The most prominent thing abouttoday attending the Alzheimer's
Association, walk to endAlzheimer's, is that racism,
(33:28):
sexism, classism, all the ismsof bigotry and bias were not
present.
Ageism wasn't present.
Disabledism wasn't present.
That was so rewarding,impactful, and inspiring to
(33:49):
feel, not just see, to actually,like my body and my bones got
re-energized.
And then the other thing I wantto say, and I and I'm
encouraging y'all, and no, no,I'm challenging you.
Go to a walk for something.
(34:11):
If for some reason they don'thave dementia or Alzheimer's
near you, go to it for leukemia,for cancer, for domestic
violence.
The amount of hope I have rightnow in humanity, in this world,
and the fact that what I see inthe news is not the whole truth.
(34:34):
Right now, I'm ready to go talkshit to Congress.
I want to go talk shit to theman on the corner.
I am more fueled right now.
Last night wasn't such a goodtime with Daddy.
She had a tough night.
And that kind of got me down.
But I get out here and I'm like,oh shit, okay.
I'm not alone.
(34:54):
I'm not the only one thinkingthis way.
And more importantly, I'm notthe only one experiencing this.
Dazzy from V103, look her up onIG, was one of the hosts during
the opening ceremony.
She had to stop several timesbecause of tear.
(35:18):
Real tears.
This is a radio personality.
She is used to talking in frontof people.
Happy, sad, catastrophe, but shewas talking about her family,
how they've been adverselysnatched around emotionally.
And she was so excited to seehow many people were out here
(35:41):
with the disease.
The blue flower meant you hadthe disease.
And it was a bunch of them.
And that's when she broke down.
I was like, you know what?
This thing is bigger than all ofus, but together we can beat it.
So that's that's it.
That's all I got.
Thank you for tuning in.
I mean, really, really, reallythank you so very much for
(36:03):
tuning in.
Whether you're watching this onYouTube or if you're listening
on your favorite podcast audioplatform.
Either way, wherever you are,subscribe.
Come back.
That's the way you're gonna knowwhen we do something next.
Y'all know how it is.
I'm Jason Miles.
I might just drop something hotin the middle of the night.
I am standing in Piedmont Park at the world's
largest Alzheimer's event.
Why is it the largest?
It's because the walk to endAlzheimer's happens all over the
country at the same time, moreor less, right?
SPEAKER_01 (00:17):
Today, we are actually a media sponsor.
Jay Smiles is out there raisingawareness.
She reaches a community ofcaregivers that we may not be
able to reach on our own.
So the more awareness we canraise, the better.
On top of that, you know,caregiving and Alzheimer's and
dementia can be so heavy.
(00:39):
And she really shows people thatlike you can you can laugh.
You can still live, you canstill laugh, and you can still
enjoy life as much as you can,and that's just so important.
It's such an important part ofcaregiving.
SPEAKER_02 (00:54):
So one of the things that's most important, we think,
is that it's estimated about40-45% of Alzheimer's disease
must be preventable.
And the way we can prevent it isby having people do things that
are going to promote healthybehaviors.
Sleep is one of the mostimportant things.
Getting a good night's sleep,slow-weight sleep, enhances our
(01:18):
memory, and clears out thosetoxic amyloid flaps and
neurofibrillar candles in ourbrain.
So sleep is really critical.
SPEAKER_10 (01:27):
Parenting up caregiving adventures with
comedian Jay Smiles is theintense journey of unexpectedly
being fully responsible for mymama.
For over a decade, I've beenchipping away at the unknown,
advocating for her, and pushingAlzheimer's awareness on anyone
and anything with a heartbeat.
SPEAKER_08 (01:52):
That's why I died, don't die.
Don't be ready for the joke.
SPEAKER_10 (01:57):
Caregiver newbies, OGs, and village members just
willing to prop up a caregiver.
You are in the right place.
Hi, this is ready.
I hope you enjoy my daughter'spodcast.
SPEAKER_12 (02:15):
Is that okay?
SPEAKER_10 (02:20):
Today's supporter shout out is two people.
Libby and Leslie of Alzheimer'sAssociation of the Rockin'
Georgia chapter.
SPEAKER_01 (02:29):
Jay Smiles is out there raising awareness.
She reaches a community ofcaregivers that we may not be
able to reach on our own.
So the more awareness we canraise, the better.
On top of that, you know,caregiving and Alzheimer's and
dementia can be so heavy.
And she really shows people thatlike you can you can laugh.
(02:52):
You can still live, you canstill laugh, and you can still
enjoy life as much as you can,and that's just so important.
It's such an important part ofcaregiving.
So it's just really cool thatshe is in this middle where she
gets it and she is raisingawareness and she's just showing
caregivers like it's okay andyou're not alone.
SPEAKER_06 (03:15):
She's amazing.
First of all, her spirit and herenergy, of course, is amazing.
Um, she did one of ourpre-interviews, which is a big
um benefit to our sponsors whoget to have some airtime.
And um one of the pre-interviewsthat we did with our research
tent in with Emory University,and that was so impactful.
Um, the entire crowd had stoppedto hear what what they were
(03:37):
saying, and it was just really,really great.
Not to mention she's you knowjumping in around and
interacting with the crowd allday.
It was amazing.
We're really thankful to haveher.
SPEAKER_10 (03:47):
Now you know you want to get a support shout out
too.
I know you do, I know you do,and you should know what to do.
Leave a review on ApplePodcasts, YouTube, or Instagram.
We are at parenting upeverywhere.
(04:08):
What's up, family?
It's your girl Jay Smile, and Iam standing in PowerPark at the
world's largest Alzheimer'sevent.
Why is it the largest?
It's because the walk-to-inAlzheimer's happened all over
the country at the same time,more or less, right?
Today, we are actually a mediasponsor.
(04:33):
Community.
We got a kid and all kinds offancy stuff.
We got giveaways.
So many people trying to fightand beat this disease.
We met people living with whatthey call young Alzheimer's.
We met people who have familymembers that die from
(04:53):
Alzheimer's on both sides.
Can you imagine that?
Anyway, we're out here.
Today is about joy, awareness,and advocacy.
The joy is that we have acommunity that is willing to
fight this thing.
Yes.
SPEAKER_04 (05:11):
Good morning.
Good morning, like we're gonnatake a few minutes to bring
information of the biggestperson here.
SPEAKER_11 (05:26):
Thank you, Ben.
SPEAKER_10 (05:27):
Thank you.
Good morning, all cyber spiderteam.
The weather is on our side, andright now that makes me feel
good.
I'm very smiling of theparenting of the podcast.
We are one of the mediasponsors.
(05:47):
My mother was the most earlysponsors about 14 years ago.
I'm a very caregiver, andbecause of it, I started a
podcast to support familycaregivers.
So what we say is humor.
We lead with benefits, and nomatter what, until there's a
(06:11):
cure, we can lock arms andsupport each other across the
globe.
So one time for the all-sizeassociation.
Now we want to hear some realdata and science and stuff.
SPEAKER_11 (06:29):
Dr.
SPEAKER_10 (06:31):
is with every stuff about you know legends and
things and dad.
SPEAKER_08 (06:40):
How are you?
SPEAKER_02 (06:41):
I am great, and I'm so happy to be here.
Thank you, Jay.
This is fabulous.
What a great turnout.
Um, you want to hear aboutending Alzheimer's disease?
Who's gonna walk today to endthis disease?
That's our goal.
We certainly have a lot ofcaregiving to do and caregiving
(07:02):
research to do, um, but we're onthe walk on the walk to end
Alzheimer's disease, and we havebeen making so much progress
over the last two years.
We have come hundreds of milesgetting closer.
Some of the research that'songoing now is actually testing
things that might be able toprevent Alzheimer's disease.
And we'll know in the next yearor two whether some of the
(07:23):
things that we're now treatingpatients with are actually going
to be effective for preventingthe disease.
So we're getting there.
SPEAKER_11 (07:32):
I love that so much.
Can you give us a littleinformation with some of the
research that's excited aboutthere's there's a lot that I'm
excited about.
SPEAKER_02 (07:49):
Um, right here behind me, we have our sleep
research team and who's outhere.
So one of the things that's mostimportant, we think, is that
it's estimated about 40-45% ofAlzheimer's might be
preventable.
And the way we can prevent it isby having people do things that
are going to promote healthybehavior.
(08:10):
Sleep is one of the mostimportant things.
Getting a good night's sleep,low-weight sleep, enhances our
memory, and clears out thosetoxic amyloid plaques and
neurofibrillary cannabis in ourbrain.
So sleep is really critical.
How do you get good sleep?
You do things to promote goodsleep, like exercise, have a
(08:35):
good diet, have good socialinteractions during the day.
And so those are the types ofhealthy lifestyles that are
gonna end Alzheimer's diseasefor many, many people.
SPEAKER_11 (08:47):
Oh my goodness, as a family caregiver, I'm urged in
sleep losing if I try to walkout the house.
Okay, all right, we would have alot of people.
SPEAKER_10 (09:06):
But thank you for giving me our marketing orders.
SPEAKER_11 (09:11):
Now, we know there's a lot of research and trials
medication might work.
Can you explain to us why thosetrials really are important?
SPEAKER_02 (09:26):
Um, thank you for bringing that up.
We have so many ideas because ofthe advances of the research,
how medications can be moreeffective.
The biggest problem is gettingpeople to volunteer to test
medications to prevent thedisease, to slow the disease.
And so clinical trials andresearch is absolutely critical.
(09:51):
If you look at the progressthat's happened in fighting
cancer, which we know has beenspectacular, there are ten times
the number of clinical trialsand the culture is that people
with cancer get into a clinicaltrial.
We need to make that happen forAlzheimer's disease and related
to methods because we can gofaster on our you know race for
(10:12):
a cure.
SPEAKER_11 (10:13):
Thank you.
SPEAKER_02 (10:31):
One is early detection.
Our ability to help rest onidentifying people in early
stages, not waiting for them togo through a difficult journey
of years and stress trying tofind a diagnosis.
We now have a blood test, whichis very accurate.
So what a transformation becausewe can think about screening
(10:52):
people and finding the diseaseas early as it starts.
Second thing is we can dosomething with new medications.
Over the last couple years,we've had our first medicines
that can slow down the progressof the disease.
That is huge.
That is the first step on ourfactor appearance.
SPEAKER_10 (11:11):
Did you all hear blood tests?
I would like a round of applausefor whoever made it that simple.
I could probably almost test myknew it, but I probably could.
SPEAKER_11 (11:25):
Now, lastly, what can you give us as caregivers
and those who've been diagnosed?
SPEAKER_10 (11:36):
That could be a thing today.
Some of the big model.
SPEAKER_02 (11:44):
We have this phenomenal program called the
Cognitive Empowerment Program,and it helps educate people
about the lifestyle changes theycan make to embrace other
abilities.
Having a disease likeAlzheimer's disease doesn't mean
you're robbed of all abilities.
It's about how do we empowerpeople, take advantage of the
(12:06):
gifts that we have, the socialinteractions, our families, our
friends, and keep ourselves ashealthy as possible and enjoy
the best quality of life.
So there are things we can do.
We need to get people engaged,diagnosed, and get them the
services they need.
SPEAKER_10 (12:22):
That's it.
You heard from the best of thebest.
Let's give a round of applausefor Dr.
Lee, for Aerie, for the allkinds of associations.
Together, we can beat this.
SPEAKER_02 (12:42):
You're welcome.
Thank you.
One of the things that we needto do.
SPEAKER_13 (13:05):
I am the PRC.
Don't have me to see my hurt.
She's got great work.
I'm not doing this morning andall this for people living in
the future.
SPEAKER_10 (13:19):
You know, just trying to do some good in the
world.
You've been doing good, baby.
Look, she is playing herselfnow.
She does so much research for usand our community.
So I got this all the time.
SPEAKER_13 (13:29):
That's why we got so much.
SPEAKER_10 (13:32):
She's at Emery.
She's a PhD, okay?
I'm not.
I'm a bullshit talker, but I'mgood at it.
We need the real mix with theresearch, right?
Absolutely, sweetheart.
Wait, better now.
Are you kidding me?
I know, right?
Wait, is that still on?
SPEAKER_05 (13:53):
Is that still on?
SPEAKER_10 (13:54):
Yeah, hey.
This is the guy.
He's been on the podcastalready.
Dan, look, it rhyme with turkey.
I know you it's G-O-E-R-K-E.
It's a mess.
SPEAKER_07 (14:07):
Tell the name of your book.
You're beautiful.
Unforgettable, unbelievable.
I wrote a memoir of mycaretaking journey with my wife,
Denise, who was diagnosed whenshe was just 56.
Anyway, it's out there.
Buy it.
It's on Amazon.
This lady is wonderful, anamazing lady.
Thank you for what you do.
(14:29):
Same here.
SPEAKER_10 (14:29):
And listen, this part is, it's, I'm gonna say it,
and don't y'all judge.
But let me tell you how badasshe is.
His wife has been an angel foryears, and he is still trying to
fight with us in this communityto get um a cure.
SPEAKER_07 (14:49):
Yeah.
SPEAKER_10 (14:50):
So once a caregiver, always a caregiver, right, Dan?
SPEAKER_07 (14:53):
Absolutely.
You are awesome.
SPEAKER_10 (14:55):
Dan was at the recording of my first comedy
special.
So we go together.
We go together, go together.
unknown (15:04):
All right.
SPEAKER_10 (15:07):
In the dementia Alzheimer's community, yellow
means you're a caregiver or asupporter of caregivers.
So what up, though?
All my yellow people.
Thank you for being a yellowperson.
I'm Jay Smiles.
I'm one of the media sponsorshere.
Okay.
Have Parenting Up Podcast.
Nice to meet you.
(15:28):
Ann Chicago.
Okay.
Hey, how you doing?
It's a pleasure.
But I did see you out at thetent.
Yep.
Yep.
Yep.
How is awesome?
Come on, my dad.
But in the early stages ofawesome and just before time.
But she kinda, you know, hasbeen like the forerun.
Yeah.
At the forefront of, hey, let'sdo this, let's donate, and let's
(15:51):
come out and walk.
And so I'm trying to piggybackon her when it comes to
attending me.
So I'm part of her team.
We are supporting my room.
We gotta have team Ali.
I'll be on her team next year.
Why not?
That's right.
I'm on her team right now.
And parenting up, we can mergeand do everything.
(16:12):
Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah.
I love it.
It's a pleasure to meet you all.
SPEAKER_05 (16:19):
Thank you.
14 years.
SPEAKER_10 (16:21):
14 years.
And she bless her heart.
She's not talking much anymore,but she can still chew.
She can walk-ish.
And if I call her name, shelooks around.
And that's all.
I just need if I say mama andshe does like this, that's good
enough.
I'm like, she knows that's myvoice.
(16:43):
All right, good to see y'allagain.
Yeah, yeah, yeah.
What's your name, honey?
Taylor.
Taylor.
SPEAKER_03 (16:48):
Yes.
SPEAKER_10 (16:49):
What's up with the shirt?
SPEAKER_03 (16:50):
So I was looking for a shirt to kind of like
represent how I feel, and that'show I feel, and I'm doing this
for my mom.
Okay.
SPEAKER_10 (16:57):
Your mom?
SPEAKER_03 (16:58):
Yeah, my mother, yeah.
SPEAKER_10 (16:59):
She is she currently battling the disease?
SPEAKER_03 (17:00):
Yeah, she is.
She is.
Okay.
SPEAKER_10 (17:02):
How old is she?
SPEAKER_03 (17:03):
She will be 65 in two weeks.
Actually, a week and a half.
SPEAKER_10 (17:08):
She was diagnosed kind of early.
SPEAKER_03 (17:10):
Uh, maybe like a year, two years.
Actually, two, three years ago.
Yeah.
Okay.
Yeah.
SPEAKER_10 (17:14):
And for anybody, if you can't see it, it's F U, and
then I love that the ribbon forAlzheimer's is on the side.
It's on the side horizontal.
So it's really he's saying fuckAlzheimer's.
Without putting a C in the K.
SPEAKER_03 (17:32):
Right, right.
SPEAKER_10 (17:32):
Where'd you get that from?
SPEAKER_03 (17:33):
Actually, Amazon.
SPEAKER_10 (17:34):
Okay, listen, sometimes Amazon works.
Yeah, sometimes it does.
SPEAKER_03 (17:38):
It does.
SPEAKER_10 (17:38):
But so this is your first time doing the walk?
SPEAKER_03 (17:41):
It's my first time, yes.
SPEAKER_10 (17:43):
Well, please join us on the Parents and Up Podcast.
I would love to have you on thepodcast.
I've been caring for my mom for14 years.
SPEAKER_03 (17:51):
Okay.
SPEAKER_10 (17:51):
And the Parents and Up Podcast, our 10 is right over
there where you can see the bigbanners.
Okay.
We got some giveaways.
Okay.
SPEAKER_03 (17:58):
I'll be over here.
SPEAKER_10 (18:00):
Uh a power pack, but most importantly, we use humor
and levity to keep familycaregivers like me and you
uplifted.
SPEAKER_03 (18:09):
I appreciate that.
Thank you.
SPEAKER_10 (18:10):
Yeah, yeah, yeah.
Thank you.
Nice to meet you.
Nice to meet you as well.
All right.
Listen, we're out here.
We're out here.
How has Alzheimer's impactedyou?
So I've not had any directeffect other than I forget where
I put my phone and my keys.
So who knows what's happening?
Honey, listen.
So I'm just walking to supportany and all.
(18:32):
I love that.
And thank you.
Absolutely.
So, like I said earlier, I'mwith the Parenting Up Podcast.
My mom has had Alzheimer's for14 years.
And my whole goal is to supportfamily caregivers with humor and
leave with levity.
Yes.
This disease totally sucks.
And until there's a cure, we canat least be able to lean on each
(18:55):
other.
SPEAKER_13 (18:56):
Absolutely.
So I am supporting my siblings.
My uh sister is deceased.
Um, you know, effects ofAlzheimer's.
My brother is currently in theuh late stages of Alzheimer's.
So I know the disease wellfirsthand from being a caregiver
(19:16):
and that support system.
So that's why my shirt says I'llremember for you.
SPEAKER_10 (19:22):
Oh, I love that.
SPEAKER_09 (19:25):
I'll remember for you.
Okay, so my name is Sophia.
I am walking in support.
I don't have any directdescendants of um Alzheimer's.
Yes, but I am a Mahjongenthusiast, and um Mahjong is
proven by science to prevent orprolong the effects of
(19:46):
Alzheimer's.
It builds memory and things ofthat nature.
So I am hoping to get morepeople that look like me, black
and brown people, into the gamebecause it is a proven fact that
it keeps Alzheimer's away.
SPEAKER_10 (20:04):
I want you to teach me.
Did you live in Land?
SPEAKER_09 (20:06):
Absolutely.
Yes, we have a group, BlackGirls Mahjong 2.
SPEAKER_10 (20:09):
We'll have all y'all, you and your group will
be on the podcast.
Look, at least two or threetimes for us to get an idea of
what the hell we're doing.
That mahjong, it scares me.
SPEAKER_09 (20:22):
You'll love it once you learn how to play, girl.
Well, I believe.
We have a group as well.
We have two different groupswhere one.
Okay.
Sisters play mahjong too.
SPEAKER_10 (20:35):
Sisters mahjong.
Sisters mahjong too.
Please go to the tent, put thaton, and on the back of your
piece of paper, put mahjong.
Okay.
That'll help me remember.
Absolutely.
I can't wait.
SPEAKER_04 (20:52):
We want to welcome you here to the walk to end
Alzheimer's.
And let me tell you, we aredeeply honored to be here with
you today on behalf of theAlzheimer's Associations for the
World.
SPEAKER_12 (21:02):
Of course, this is a part of my heart because my
grandfather, who will be 90years old in December, is
actually, you know, battlingthis disease.
He's has Alzheimer's.
So I'm his primary caretaker.
And when I tell you it has beena journey, so when I reached out
to the Alzheimer's Associationand we promoted on the show,
when we took calls from mymillions of listeners, and I
didn't know that people like mewere actually going through
(21:25):
this.
And so I felt like I'm not alonein this journey because I
thought that I was.
And thank God that I'm not.
So once again, I'm walking formy grandfather, uh, my
great-grandmother, and also mygrandmother who is uh battling
with this disease.
SPEAKER_00 (21:39):
I'm here to advocate for my father, his sister, their
father, and all of your family.
My father passed away in Marchof this year, and his sister
passed away last month when mygrandfather was diagnosed in the
late 90s.
It was a death sentence.
Vividly remember we didn't talkabout it, we didn't know what to
do about it, and uh, there was alot of confusion.
(22:01):
I wasn't aware of theassociation, I wasn't aware of
the support network.
I was young and confused, and myfather was diagnosed.
I found this association, Ifound strength, I found wisdom,
and I found education.
Um things have changed rapidly,but it was too late for my
father.
Today things have changeddramatically for those of you
getting diagnosed.
I have friends who are on someof the drugs that are available
(22:23):
now.
The FDA is released.
There's finally hope.
Unbelievable how close we are toputting this thing to rest.
SPEAKER_04 (24:03):
There's also a white flower.
And I'm confident that one daywe will be able to add this
white flower to the garden thatwill represent the first
survivor of all times.
That will be such an incredibleaddition to the garden, but
(24:23):
until that day, we can't backdown, y'all.
We must continue to lead the waybecause together we can end
Alzheimer's.
SPEAKER_10 (25:05):
Nice sky.
Meaning it's not too hot, it'snot too cold, and then there are
about 2,500 people who are onyour team.
We are standing right here atthe 2025 Walk to End
Alzheimer's.
Now, this is sponsored by theGeorgia chapter, but it's
(25:26):
happening all over the place.
Y'all, we have cheerleaders fromGeorgia Tech helping us learn
how to not cheer and leave thatto people who are much younger
than us.
I'm gonna tell you that.
What they were doing, I can't dothat.
We have people from B103, wehave people from news, multiple
radio stations, making sure thatthe word gets out.
(25:50):
There are people who arefighting hard as hell to beat
this disease.
I met one lady where she gotdiagnosed two years ago and
she's not even 60.
It's considered youngAlzheimer's.
It's not even quite early onset,and she's one of the very few
ambassadors that the Alzheimer'sAssociation has used to be a
(26:14):
spokesperson across the nation.
Your girl got to get on stagewith a yellow flower.
What we learned today waswhether you're a caregiver, a
survivor, lost somebody to thedisease, a corporate sponsor,
you get a different colorflower.
(26:36):
So it felt like we were in aworld of tulips and daisies
because everybody at theappropriate times like jumped up
and down with their flowers.
It was so colorful and it was sobeautiful.
There are at least 15 differentfacilities who are here sharing
what they do for loved ones,family members who are suffering
(27:01):
with any form of dementia.
Parkinson's, frontal, uh,temporal dementia, vascular
dementia.
But these are care centers thatvery specifically only want
people suffering with dementia.
Emory University was here.
They had this huge research tenttelling us what they're doing to
(27:22):
move the needle.
The biggest thing, one of themost prominent people, um, Dr.
Levy, in all of the country whenit comes to neurology and
science and thinking this, allthe dementia-related things out,
he told us we gotta get in moreclinical trials.
Did y'all know that?
(27:42):
Like, unfortunately, cancer isbeating our ass.
10 to 1 with participants inclinical trials.
Now, that helps them get totreatments and a cure.
We haven't gotten to a cure yet.
I learned today that the colorwhite, a white flower, is
(28:05):
symbolic.
We are fighting to wait and seewhen will we have the first
survivor of Alzheimer's?
A person who is diagnosed, butthen the disease is reversed or
it vanishes.
The number of people who startedcrying and cheering at the
thought of when will we get thefirst survivor?
(28:30):
My heart started beating fast.
To me, it felt like having thefirst black president or having
uh the first woman do something,or the first time the Cowboys
won the Super Bowl.
I'm just saying, you know, bigfancy first.
(28:50):
Researchers, kids.
The cutest thing ever, thislittle girl could barely walk.
She had on a fit that was sodamn adorable.
It was Alzheimer's.
She had purple pom-poms, and shewas the symbolic holder of the
white flower.
(29:11):
She was blowing purple bubbles.
There was so much joy andhappiness around us on this big
old football field.
We had two different lengths ofthe walk.
There was a 1.5 distance and a2.5 distance miles.
1.5 miles, 2.5 miles.
And there were people inwheelchairs, power wheelchairs,
(29:35):
and some people were gettingpushed.
You see what I'm saying?
That is serious.
You talking about commitment tosupport.
You are in a wheelchair gettingpushed to fight for other people
while you are alreadypotentially in a compromised
physical state.
(29:56):
It was so amazing.
I have I've never met so manypeople supporting a disease that
they didn't have a connectionto.
I met at least five people whohaven't had a family member, a
coworker, or anybody have anyform of dementia.
(30:19):
You know why they're here?
Because they have empathy, theyare reading the news, they're
watching stuff on social media,and they're getting involved
simply because advocacy is whatyou do to make humanity better.
It blew me away.
(30:41):
How many things do you fight forthat have not ever affected you?
Now you're talking about heart.
That's big heart.
That's big heart.
So we had calisthenics, that'ssuch an old school world.
We were stretching.
They got porta potties with handsanitizer, there smoothies,
(31:04):
chicken and waffles, yeah, foodcarts at the Alzheimer's walk to
end the disease.
It's been a great day.
There are all every gender,every race, at least eight
(31:29):
generations.
Congratulations, Alzheimer'sAssociation.
Congratulations on putting onthe biggest, most productive,
most financially um let's saysomething.
They raised the most money andgot the most people out here
that they've ever done.
(31:50):
In a time when our country andour world is starving for
community and the lack of hate.
We found it today.
So I'm happy.
So I'm so very happy.
I'm right now thinking about mygrandfather who died from the
(32:10):
disease, and my poor mama'sdaddy, which is the reason why.
I'm a caregiver, I got apodcast, and I'm a comedian.
And then look, we pucked outsome new merch, y'all.
Alright, so if you if youlisten, you're gonna have to go
to the YouTube page to look atit.
Let me know what you think.
But we for the first time, wegot front and back on our gear.
(32:39):
Thank y'all, thank y'all, thanky'all.
Please like, share, get in thecomments, get in the DMs.
Tell me what else I can do tohelp support you and those you
know who are family caregivers.
Peace.
Grandgraddy.
Apparently, when I was little, Icouldn't say granddaddy, so I
(33:05):
said grandgraddy.
The snuggle up.
The most prominent thing abouttoday attending the Alzheimer's
Association, walk to endAlzheimer's, is that racism,
(33:28):
sexism, classism, all the ismsof bigotry and bias were not
present.
Ageism wasn't present.
Disabledism wasn't present.
That was so rewarding,impactful, and inspiring to
(33:49):
feel, not just see, to actually,like my body and my bones got
re-energized.
And then the other thing I wantto say, and I and I'm
encouraging y'all, and no, no,I'm challenging you.
Go to a walk for something.
(34:11):
If for some reason they don'thave dementia or Alzheimer's
near you, go to it for leukemia,for cancer, for domestic
violence.
The amount of hope I have rightnow in humanity, in this world,
and the fact that what I see inthe news is not the whole truth.
(34:34):
Right now, I'm ready to go talkshit to Congress.
I want to go talk shit to theman on the corner.
I am more fueled right now.
Last night wasn't such a goodtime with Daddy.
She had a tough night.
And that kind of got me down.
But I get out here and I'm like,oh shit, okay.
I'm not alone.
(34:54):
I'm not the only one thinkingthis way.
And more importantly, I'm notthe only one experiencing this.
Dazzy from V103, look her up onIG, was one of the hosts during
the opening ceremony.
She had to stop several timesbecause of tear.
(35:18):
Real tears.
This is a radio personality.
She is used to talking in frontof people.
Happy, sad, catastrophe, but shewas talking about her family,
how they've been adverselysnatched around emotionally.
And she was so excited to seehow many people were out here
(35:41):
with the disease.
The blue flower meant you hadthe disease.
And it was a bunch of them.
And that's when she broke down.
I was like, you know what?
This thing is bigger than all ofus, but together we can beat it.
So that's that's it.
That's all I got.
Thank you for tuning in.
I mean, really, really, reallythank you so very much for
(36:03):
tuning in.
Whether you're watching this onYouTube or if you're listening
on your favorite podcast audioplatform.
Either way, wherever you are,subscribe.
Come back.
That's the way you're gonna knowwhen we do something next.
Y'all know how it is.
I'm Jason Miles.
I might just drop something hotin the middle of the night.
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