In 2005 my mother, who I affectionately call “Momsey,” was officially diagnosed with Alzheimer’s. Several years prior, my brother and I knew something was wrong, but couldn’t quite put our fingers on it. At the time, my brother was at home caring for my father and mother, and I lived almost 1000 miles away. Thank God for the Internet-it was there that I would garner information about AD and share it with my brother and other members of our extended family and friends.
In 2009 my father passed, and as difficult as it was, I moved back home to take care of Momsey. However, I wouldn’t trade this journey for anything else in world. I am thankful I am able to share this time with my mother and I am extremely grateful to God for encouraging friends, caregiver support groups and the Alzheimer’s Association.
In my effort to give back, I started volunteering in different capacities with the Alzheimer’s Association – one being that of a Community Representative where it was my role to inform those about the warning signs of Alzheimer’s disease. From that, I also learned that the incidence of Alzheimer’s disease in the African American community was twice as likely as likely as that of our white counterparts. I had to do my part to get the word out. Many started coming to me for information and advice. I had to quickly tell them, I’m not a doctor, folks. I can only share with you my experience.
And as I attended one of many caregiver support groups for myself and participated in the many online forums I would hear the concerns of others: going at it alone, financial concerns, health issues, much need respite and more. From that, I came up with the idea of a website dedicated to serving those needs. I named it in honor of my praying mother, Olivia who herself, was a tireless volunteer. Thus, OliviasPrayer.org – The Place for Caregivers and Alzheimer’s Awareness in the African American Community.