On Saturday, August 25th, at the Detroit Zoo, several Ross Medical Education Center campuses teamed up to participate in the annual Walk to End Alzheimer’s. Ross New Baltimore, Ross Madison Heights, Ross Canton, Ross Taylor, and Ross Ann Arbor were the campuses that were able to form the Ross team at this event.
“As the Captain of this Community Service walk, I started the possibility of soon finding a way for the first survivor of Alzheimer’s to be realized. But, I couldn’t take on this disease alone and knew I needed a team,” said Noreen Bishoff, Lead Instructor in the Dental Assistant program in New Baltimore, Michigan.
Doreen knew that with a team, they could be an unstoppable force against the nation’s sixth-leading cause of death. In fact, in Michigan alone there are 180,000 cases of people suffering with this debilitating disease. This does not include the impact on the vast number of volunteers, health care providers, and family caregivers that give of their time and talent to provide the around the clock support needed by Alzheimer patients.
A Team Captain dream was realized with the New Baltimore students and staff and they were proud to also welcome other Ross campus teams from the region! Students, as well as family members, fiancés, significant others, siblings, and children got up early on a rainy Saturday morning and headed to the starting point for the 1.8 mile walk along with over 6,900 other participants. None of this phased this Ross region because they knew they weren’t just giving up a Saturday, instead they were giving love and hope. Their hope is that one day there will no longer be a need to label a person as an Alzheimer patient. “Great job to all participants, and thank you for your participation from the bottom of my heart,” said event organizer Noreen Bishoff.