Candy Pentland brings energy to Memory Walk
She readily admits she has a soft place in her heart for Alzheimer’s and dementia patients.
“Alzheimer’s patients stroke my heart,” Candy Pentland says. “I don’t think it is depressing to be around elderly people at all.”
Pentland talks about one elderly resident who recalls vividly her journey as a 6-year-old across the United States in a covered wagon.
“If you think about how much they have lived, and even if they can share a little bit of that, they have so much to contribute,” says Pentland. “They have wonderful stories to tell.”
The marketing director at Pinewood Care Center, Pentland has volunteered countless hours with the North Idaho Alzheimer’s Association with the hope that someday a cure for the disease will be found.
Pentland’s dad had dementia and lived in a skilled-nursing facility for five years before he died. His illness sparked her sincere and caring interest in dementia and Alzheimer’s patients.
Alzheimer’s is a progressive brain disorder that gradually destroys a person’s memory and ability to learn, reason, make judgments, communicate and carry out daily activities.
“Candy, despite her tiny stature, has the biggest heart around,” says P.J. Christo, outreach coordinator for the North Idaho Alzheimer’s Association. “She has raised seven children in her lifetime and manages to hold down a full-time job. Her organizational skills are exemplary, and she is full of energy and has great determination.”
Pentland has been a volunteer with Memory Walk for many years, both as a committee member and as a team captain, and is the event’s chairwoman this year, says Christo.
The 13th annual Memory Walk, the association’s national signature event to help those battling Alzheimer’s disease, is scheduled for Oct. 7, a change from the traditional September date.
Pentland’s creativity and determination brought Pinewood Care Center the only Memory Walk traveling trophy, and last year she was instrumental in helping Pinewood capture first place in the team competition.
Christo hopes to raise more than $40,000 this year.
“The walk is an absolutely beautiful stroll along the lakefront of Lake Pend Oreille at Farragut State Park,” she says. Participants walk as individuals or as part of a team, and are sponsored by friends, family, business associates and others who donate money to the Alzheimer’s Association. About 25 people volunteer to register walkers, staff rest stops and offer refreshments.
Although there is no cure for Alzheimer’s, new treatments are on the horizon as a result of accelerating insight into the biology of the disease. Memory Walk participants help show support for patients and their families, and help fund research with the money they raise.
The Alzheimer’s Associaton offers free educational seminars to the public. The next, “Communication: The Key to Dementia Care,” will be Tuesday from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. at Life Care Center of Coeur d’Alene. The speaker, Joel Loiacono, Inland Northwest Alzheimer’s Association executive director, will discuss verbal and nonverbal communication strategies and caregiver tips.
Attendees can get certificates of attendance for two contact hours.