On November 24, 2010, Alan Arnette began his journey to climb the seven peaks around the world to raise awareness for Alzheimer’s disease, a condition that affected him personally. Arnette took care of his mother, Ida Arnette, who suffered from Alzheimer’s disease; she passed away in August 2009.
In just under a year, Arnette completed his goal of climbing the seven summits and raised money for Alzheimer’s disease organizations he selected, including the Cure Alzheimer’s Fund, the National Family Caregivers Association and the Alzheimer’s Association.
Since beginning his journey, Arnette has shared his experience of being his mother’s caregiver, given advice to caregivers of parents with Alzheimer’s disease, and provided updates on his progress. Now that he has completed his journey to climb the seven peaks, Arnette talks to EmpowHER about how he kept going, what he plans to do next, and how others can become advocates and raise awareness for Alzheimer’s disease.
You have completed your goal of climbing all seven peaks to raise awareness for Alzheimer’s disease. Looking back at your journey, what were your most difficult obstacles to overcome? How did you keep yourself going?
It was easy to keep going because we cannot give up on caregiver support or finding improved treatments and a cure. However, there were certainly challenges such as eight days trapped in a tent at 17,200’ on Denali waiting out weather; an immobilizing sprained ankle on the descent from Kilimanjaro; labor strikes in Papua preventing flights; and wondering sometimes if I was making a difference.
With each challenge came a clear memory of my mom and all those suffering from this disease and of course my purpose. Also I received strong support through the campaign (comments, emails, calls) that gave me further motivation and encouragement to keep going.
Now that you have completed your campaign, what do you hope to do next?
Until there is improved early diagnosis, better support for caregivers and a cure, Alzheimer’s must take center stage in health care. Every 69 seconds a new person develops Alzheimer’s in the United States alone; this means families and finances are devastated. As a society we are not prepared for this tsunami so I will continue to raise awareness, educate people and raise money for research and to provide support for family caregivers and all those affected through more adventures and speaking to whomever will listen.
What advice would you give to other people who would like to raise awareness for Alzheimer’s disease as you have?
Find your passion and link it to a personal effort to make a difference. I was very gratified by the reaction from my fellow climbers throughout these eight climbs in that many of them had gone through what I had and they fully supported me and the cause. When they returned home, they encouraged their friends and families to make donations and to learn the warning signs — and that is what this was all about.
As for suggestions, create a community of partners and direct 100 percent of all the donations to your cause. I created a community of partners who funded my climbs (The Alzheimer’s Immunotherapy Program) and three non-profits (Cure Alzheimer’s Fund, Alzheimer’s Association and National Family Caregivers Association) where 100 percent of all the donations are directed. All of the partners participated in supporting my efforts through outreach to their members.
Use a wide range of contact methods including social plus traditional media with frequent contact. Keep your communication relevant, candid and share your personal experiences. I use my website, AlanArnette.com, which has a loyal global following and 1 million visits a year, my Facebook page (Facebook.com/Alan.Arnette) and Twitter handle (twitter.com/Alan.Arnette). In addition, we created a dedicated Facebook page (Facebook.com/Climb4AD) and website (Climb4AD.com) for the campaign.
References
Correspondence with Alan Arnette. 11 November 2011. Email.
The 7 Summits Climb for Alzheimer’s: Memories are Everything. Campaign Overview. 14 November 2011. Web.
http://www.climb4ad.com/campaign-overview
Reviewed November 14, 2011
by Michele Blacksberg RN
Edited by Jody Smith