LYNN – Josh Judkins, of Lynn, will bike 100 miles in the Alzheimer’s Association, Massachusetts/New Hampshire Chapter’s RIDE to End Alzheimer’s on Saturday, June 24.
Starting and finishing at Odiorne State Park in Rye, NH, the RIDE provides a 2-, 30-, 62- and 100-mile route through the towns of coastal New Hampshire and the north shore of Massachusetts.
This is the first time Judkins will join the event, participating to honor the memory of his grandmother, “During my summers home from school I used to provide care for her as other family members had to work. Watching a woman I loved so much slowly be taken away from me significantly affected me.”
Judkins, a technical salesman for Thermo Fisher Scientific, has raised $1,300 for the 2017 event.
“The vast majority of the funds go directly to support grants for Alzheimer’s research. During my postdoc, I worked very briefly on some Alzheimer’s related projects at Pfizer Neuroscience as well.”
Started by the Noonan family, the RIDE to End Alzheimer’s, formerly called Memory Ride, grew from a small, family-inspired event to a cycling challenge attracting riders throughout New England and beyond. Each year, 90 percent of the funds raised are given to research restricted grants for Alzheimer’s disease and other dementias. The remaining 10 percent of the proceeds fund programs and services in Massachusetts and New Hampshire. Since the event began 21 years ago, the RIDE to End Alzheimer’s has raised over $4,000,000.
“We know that five million Americans are living with Alzheimer’s, by 2050 this number could rise as high as sixteen million,” said Autumn Hotaling, Development Officer for the Alzheimer’s Association, MA/NH Chapter. “We must find meaningful treatment and a cure for Alzheimer’s disease. With the awareness and funds raised by our RIDE to End Alzheimer’s cyclists, we will move closer to our vision of a world without Alzheimer’s.”
To register or volunteer at the RIDE to End Alzheimer’s event, visit alzmass.org/ride.