Holly's Voice

I met Holly five years ago in a baby group class. We immediately connected through our passion for jewelry and philanthropy. Her line, CJ Free Jewelry, is unique and timeless.  Last year Holly and her business partner, actress Jamie-Lynn Sigler, approached me about creating a red-corded bracelet in honor of my battle against heart disease.  I jumped at the opportunity to raise money and awareness for the American Heart Association. Today, Holly and Jamie are launching a new campaign with a limited edition purple bracelet to raise money and awareness for the Alzheimer’s Association. Alzheimer’s is an illness that is close to Holly’s heart. I’m honored to share Holly’s voice.

Photo collage of Holly, Poppy, and his artwork.

Going Purple for Poppy

By Holly Freeman

Alzheimer’s has touched so many.  I know firsthand.

My grandfather was an incredibly talented artist. His works spanned from beautiful flowers and landscapes, to drawings of my favorite cartoon characters he made just for me and my friends. His mind was as precise and colorful as the paintings and drawings he created.

But Alzheimer’s changed that. The details and precision that had always been a hallmark of his art started to shift. There were inaccuracies—the first sign to me that his health, and more specifically his mind, were declining. 

As we spent time together while I attended college near his home, the changes became more and more painful to watch. Alzheimer’s was slowly taking him away – and more than anything, I wanted to be able stop this devastating disease.

There were good days when Poppy would turn and look at me with a half smile when I called his name or squeeze my hand when we were sitting together. These moments were small gifts – moments of recognition.  But as the disease progressed, there came a point when my grandfather didn’t recognize me at all.

I don’t want any other granddaughters to lose their grandfathers to Alzheimer’s. That’s what is driving me to help fund research, programs and care for people dealing with this disease. I’m taking action not only for the sake of those suffering, but also to spare their loved ones the pain of simultaneously living through this disease.

Back when my grandfather was diagnosed, we didn’t have such easy access to information. People weren’t on the Internet sharing their stories.  But today, we have the opportunity to come together and support one another. And we each have the opportunity to take action.

Friday September 21st is Alzheimer’s Action Day. If we each choose to do something – even if it is as small as talking openly about Alzheimer’s – we can raise awareness, get more funding for treatments, and move closer to a future where our children won’t see their grandparents, their parents or anyone else slowly be taken by this disease. 

Learn more about how you can go purple to end Alzheimer's this month at Alzheimer's Association. 

Stefanie's Voice

Stefanie, Sarah, me and Michelle by the food trucks at the event

Good bye rubber chicken dinners and hello food trucks, Pauly D, Seth Rogen, Paul Rudd and Bruno Mars.  Need I say more?  Hilarity for Charity not only raised money for Alzheimer's, a disease that has recently touched my good friend Stefanie, but it was fun.  The event was hip and cool, bringing awareness to an often times forgotten disease.  Rogen, who's wife Laura Miller's family has been affected by the disease for multiple generations, hosted the event and wants the world to know that Alzheimer's isn't just a disease for "old people".  In fact, according to the Alzheimer's Association website, it's estimated that nearly 200,000 Americans in their 40s and 50s have been diagnosed with early onset Alzheimer's.  Stefanie's another one of my inspiring girlfriends.  Check out her voice and donate to the Alzheimer's Association, every penny counts!

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By Stefanie Paletz

"God grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change; courage to change the things I can; and wisdom to know the difference."  I am not a religious person, but I have held this prayer close to me for a very long time.  My mom introduced it to me when I was young, during a time when I could not control my worrying.  I needed to learn how to quiet the noise inside my head, to be still, and to trust that things have a way of working themselves out.  Over the years I have turned to this prayer in times of need.  Always for a different reason, but seeking the same advice - to distinctly separate what can and can't be controlled and to find acceptance.  Never has this prayer carried more meaning for me than it does right now.  My father is 64 years old and he was diagnosed with Early-Onset Alzheimer's at age 62.  It was 2009 and I was 31 years old.  Fear, sadness, pain and despair inhabited my soul and haven't left since.  They have become all too familiar feelings.  Acceptance, on the other hand, is still foreign.  Why should I accept that this terrible disease has stricken my dad and my family?  How can I accept that he won't know his own grandchildren?  Or that my dad is no longer the same man that my mom married over 40 years ago?  These are questions that I struggle with each day. 

Prior to his Alzheimer's, my dad always knew about acceptance.  He embodied it.  He rarely challenged what life threw his way.  he simply dealt with what is.  Even now, this disease only allows him to focus on the present and to accept what is directly in front of him.  It's ironic, yet oddly beautiful. 

In this crazy, fast-paced world filled with tragedy, I hope to learn from his outlook on life and to accept the things I cannot change so that I can find peace.