As a member of the Walk to End Alzheimer’s recruitment committee, Margaret Curl figured she’d better have her own team.
Her two older sisters joined her on team “Groundhog Day,” named after the movie where the weatherman, played by Bill Murray, keeps reliving the same day.
“Some people would find this a little morose, but we figure living with Alzheimer’s is kind of like living the same day over and over again, like the movie,” Curl said.
Curl’s mother, Shirley Cline, 82, was diagnosed early with Alzheimer’s in 2017.
“There is a different level of engagement when something hits you close to home,” Curl said.
Curl, a Carmel resident, competed in the Indianapolis version of the Walk Sept. 30. The opening ceremony began at Bankers Life Fieldhouse. There were one-mile and three-mile routes. Curl raised $1,025. Curl’s husband, Mike, joined her on the walk.
“It was a sea of purple with many raising their flowers for the Promise Garden,” said Curl, who added the turnout was great.
Walk participants around the nation raise flowers representing their promise to remember, honor, care and fight for those living Alzheimer’s and their caregivers.
Curl, who is officially her mother’s caregiver, previously participated in the Walk to End Alzheimer’s as part of the Eli Lilly team for a few years.
Curl’s mother lives in the assisted living section of the Bickford of Carmel.
“We moved her in April from another nursing home,” Curl said. “They thought she was ready for memory care. My sisters and I didn’t agree, so we moved her. I still think she has a good amount of time in assisted living. As soon as she goes into the memory care, I think she’ll see a decline. We’re trying to keep her as independent as we can.”
After being diagnosed, Cline continued to live on her own for a couple of years, Curl said.
“We moved her on her own into a nursing facility in 2012,” Curl said. “Her doctor said she would have a better transition if we moved her there earlier than a lot of people. She was still driving when she moved.”
Curl works in the medicines development unit for supplying external vendors with drugs for clinical trials, which includes Alzheimer’s.
Lilly is statewide premier sponsor of the Walk to End Alzheimer’s.
Curl’s sister, Emily Cline, is a physician in Greenwood. Her other sister, Eleanor Trent, lives Sonoma, Calif. Curl said both always donate to the Walk to End Alzheimer.
For more, visit alz.org/indiana/.
