ADRIAN – Area veterans represented not only the ranks of their soldiers and soldiers, but also those affected by Alzheimer’s disease on Friday as they marched from Ann Arbor to Adrian for more than 13 hours.
A group of five veterans – Cody Dilyard, Adam Hartle, Scott Doney, Tim Welbaum, and Joshuah Sandlin – completed the 35-mile hike from Ann Arbor to Adrian around 4 p.m. Friday and arrived at the Visiting Angels Senior Homecare Agency, 3300 N. Adrian Highway . The veterans, who began the hike from the Alzheimer’s Association office in Ann Arbor at around 2:30 a.m. on Friday, were greeted by family, loved ones, friends, and community members as they made their way into town and off the Kiwanis Trail on Friday afternoon .
A homecoming party celebrated the achievement of the achievement – and to raise money for the Alzheimer’s Association – included food trucks, donuts, cider, ice cream, and a bouncy castle for the kids.
This year, the march will be chaired for the third time by Welbaum, a retired US Army major, and Doney, an Army veteran. Both are associated with Visiting Angels – Welbaum is the owner of the Adrian agency and Doney is the office manager. They didn’t do the march last year because of the COVID-19 pandemic.
“Alzheimer’s affects at least one in three people,” said Welbaum, “and without our march and fundraising last year, we couldn’t make a big difference. This is a big year for us to come back. “
The goal for the “homecoming” march this weekend was $ 100,000, according to Welbaum. During a phone interview on Thursday, Welbaum said $ 140,000 had already been raised for the Alzheimer’s Association. Further donations are expected.
The Visiting Angels agency provides personalized attention, light housekeeping, transportation, meal preparation, escort and many other services to help seniors live safely at home while regaining their independence so they don’t move to assisted living or nursing homes have to .
Veterans with post-traumatic street disorder or traumatic brain injuries are two to four times more likely to develop Alzheimer’s disease or other forms of dementia, according to the Alzheimer’s Association. More people die from Alzheimer’s each year than from breast cancer and prostate cancer combined.
“People are realizing the severity of this disease,” said Welbaum, “and they are also seeing that it is even more frightening for our veterans with PTSD or traumatic brain injuries.”
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