INAUGURAL WALK TO END ALZHEIMER’S RAISES THOUSANDS OF DOLLARS

Participants in the inaugural Walk to End Alzheimer’s donned purple shirts and held flower pinwheels to raise awareness of the disease.

INTRO: More than 100 participants put on their walking shoes and strolled around Islamorada’s Founders Park at the inaugural Walk to End Alzheimer’s on Dec. 10. Presented by Oasis at the Keys Nursing and Rehab on Plantation Key, more than $24,000 was raised for the Alzheimer’s Association’s care, support and research efforts in the community. According to the Alzheimer’s Association, more than 6 million Americans are living with Alzheimer’s, and more than 11 million family and friends provide unpaid care for them. 

Contributed photos

Jim McCarthy
Jim McCarthy is one of the many Western New Yorkers who escaped the snow and frigid temperatures for warm living by the water. A former crime & court reporter and city editor for two Western New York newspapers, Jim has been honing his craft since he graduated from St. Bonaventure University in 2014. In his 4-plus years in the Keys, Jim has enjoyed connecting with the community. “One of my college professors would always preach to be curious,” he said. “Behind every person is a story that’s unique to them, and one worth telling. As writers, we are the ones who paint the pictures in the readers minds of the emotions, the struggles and the triumphs.” Jim is past president of the Key Largo Sunset Rotary Club, which is composed of energetic members who serve the community’s youth and older populations. Jim is a sports fanatic who loves to watch football, hockey, mixed martial arts and golf. He also enjoys time with family and his new baby boy, Lucas, who arrived Oct. 4, 2022.