thoughts on the news of the day: alzheimers

hmmm…..

            Pat Summitt, the longtime women’s basketball coach at Tennessee is one of my heroes.  She has won more games in major women’s basketball than any coach – ever.  To me, she is the pinnacle of strength, stamina, honesty and integrity.  She is 59 years old and has recently been diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease. This means that as her memory slips away she will no longer be able to coach and her life will change dramatically.  If a cure is not found she will slowly die from the disease. 

            Alzheimer’s affects approximately five million people in the United States and over 200,000 of those affected are under the age of 65.  It is a debilitating and fatal disease and is devastating for the family that lives with it.

            I have a friend in Houston who had a husband that was 45 when he was diagnosed.  He had a very aggressive version of the disease and died when he was about 49.  My friend and her husband agreed that they would divorce when he was still competent to make the decision in order to protect the assets they had accumulated together.  It broke their hearts and she devotedly cared for him, in and out of nursing homes until he died. 

            Every week in our prayer group, we pray for the Alzheimer’s researchers and for people affected by the disease which is a leading cause of death in our country. Pray for a cure, pray for recovery from this disease and pray for patience for those who care for victims of this horrible malady.   Hopefully a cure will be found soon. 

            Lord, hear our prayer.

            hmmm…..