Wilf Campus for Senior Living’s Ninth Annual Walk for Alzheimer’s Raises Over $1,900

SOMERSET, N.J. - Oct. 6, 2014 - PRLog -- Knowing that they are bringing awareness to the issue of Alzheimer’s Disease and making a difference in the lives of those served by the Greater New Jersey Chapter of the Alzheimer’s Association brought nearly 70 residents and staff members at The Oscar & Ella Wilf Campus for Senior Living in Somerset out to participate in the campuses ninth annual walk for the disease on September 18.

The entire community, which included Stein Assisted Living, The Wilentz Senior Residence and The Stein Hospice, raised over 1,900 this year, with donations still coming in. This total tops the $1,600 tally in 2013, the $1,300 tally in 2012 and the $1,200 total in 2011.

According to Randi Rosen, Director of Marketing and organizer of the event, a donation check will be mailed to the Alzheimer’s Association, Greater New Jersey Chapter shortly.

The Wilf Campus’ donation will be used toward research, helping families coping with the disease, offering support groups and providing respite stays for caregivers of Alzheimer’s patients.

With a remarkable autumn backdrop on campus this year compared to last year’s event which was rainy, Rosen remarked, “Everyone was happy to be out there this year. It’s a campus-wide morning of coming together for the benefit of others. All of us that work here or live here are touched in some way by this disease.”

She added, “We get so much more than what we give. It is always very inspiring to see what we can do as one group. The seniors are able to find satisfaction and purpose and to feel productive in giving back to the community. They’re able to feel important.

Anne Brown, who has been a resident at Stein Assisted Living for four months, said, “It was a great walk and there were loads of people that were in it and had a good feeling about being part of it.”

“So many of us are getting older and we’re living longer and that is when it seems like Alzheimer’s rears its ugly head,” added Brown, who walked proudly with a group of her female friends.

“Some of them couldn’t walk very well, but they picked up their feet and went on anyway, which I thought was really wonderful,” she said.

Brown, who sent a check to the Alzheimer’s Association following the walk, said that certain issues like Alzheimer’s become more prevalent when you go from living on your own to living with elderly people.

The Wilf Campus donation was accomplished through several efforts, including bake sales, silent auctions, a rummage sale, personal and online donations, as well as the sale of pinwheel flowers.

“The sale of the pinwheel flowers was held during the walk,” noted Rosen. “Some were also planted for the day along the walk route. They were very popular this year.”

She added that a “Casual for a Cause” day, where staff members pitch in $5 each to wear denim jeans to work instead of their corporate clothes, also raises funds.

Rosen estimated that approximately 35 percent of the population on campus are impacted by Alzheimer’s disease, which she added is “reaching epidemic proportions” in the world.

The Oscar and Ella Wilf Campus for Senior Living is comprised of Stein Assisted Living Residence, the Jaffa Gate Memory Care Neighborhood, Stein Hospice, Wilentz Senior Residence, Wilf Transport, Wilf At Home, and The Foundation at the Wilf Campus. For more information, contact us at (732) 568-1155, info@wilfcampus.org or visit us at www.wilfcampus.org.