Twin Cities Memory Walk Scheduled for September 30, Stu Voigt Named Honorary Chairman.

MINNEAPOLIS -- The Twin Cities Memory Walk, part of a nationwide awareness and fundraising effort for the Alzheimer's Association, is scheduled for 10:00 a.m. on Saturday, September 30, 2006, at Hyland Lake Park Reserve in Bloomington. Money raised by the Twin Cities Memory Walk will remain in Minnesota and North Dakota, providing care and support services to patients, their families and their caregivers.

"Alzheimer's is a devastating disease that affects more than four million people in the United States and approximately 110,000 right here in Minnesota and North Dakota," said Mary Birchard, executive director of the Alzheimer's Association of Minnesota and North Dakota. Persons with Alzheimer's live an average of eight years from the onset of symptoms, although many live as long as 20 years. "This takes an enormous toll on families and caregivers, not to mention American businesses and the health care system," Birchard added. "We have to find a way to make Alzheimer's just a memory."

Former Minnesota Viking Stu Voigt is the 2006 Memory Walk honorary chairman. His father died of Alzheimer's in 2005, and his mother is in the middle stages of the disease. Voigt first realized his father was suffering from memory loss when he kept losing the Super Bowl ring Voigt had given him. "Luckily, I was able to find it in the sofa cushions or under his bed," said Voigt, "but that's when I realized his memory loss was progressing at a rapid rate. The ring no longer carried any significance for him."

Voigt will be on hand to walk with individuals and teams participating in either of two routes at this year's Twin Cities Memory Walk. One route is two miles, the other is less than one mile.

Dino's The Greek Place will provide free gyro bites, Greek meatballs with tzatziki sauce and baklava to walkers at the end of the walk. "Dino's is a family business," said founder Dino Adamidis. "We feed families, support school programs and always strive to give back to the community. We hope to continue as a partner to the Alzheimer's Association of Minnesota and North Dakota until a cure is found, and there are no longer memories lost or families left heartbroken by this disease." Dino's The Greek Place became involved in the Memory Walk through one of its employees, whose mother has Alzheimer's disease.

Memory Walks are conducted in 600 communities across the country and have become the Alzheimer's Association's largest fundraising effort. In Minnesota and North Dakota, future Memory Walks are scheduled as follows:

September 12 - Mankato, Minn.
         September 16 - Fargo, N.D.
         September 23 - Bismarck, N.D.
         September 30 - Minot, N.D.
         September 30 - Bloomington, Minn.
         October 7 - Duluth, Minn.
         October 7 - Red Wing, Minn.
         October 7 - St. Cloud, Minn.

For more information on any of these Memory Walks, call 952-857-0539 or visit www.alzmndak.org.

The Alzheimer's Association of Minnesota and North Dakota improves the lives of those touched by the disease by providing leadership, support, education, advocacy and research.

Note to editors/reporters: Interviews can be scheduled with Stu Voigt, Mary Birchard or with individuals dealing with Alzheimer's disease and their families.