VOA标准英语2011--Caregivers Boost Alzheimer's Awareness

Caregivers Boost Alzheimer's Awareness¹

 

November is National Alzheimer's Disease Awareness Month and Family Caregiver Month. An estimated 5.4 million Americans have Alzheimer's.

U.S. President Barack Obama called upon the people of the United States to learn more about Alzheimer's and to offer support to people living with the disease, as well as their caregivers.

Climbing mountains

Alan Arnette, a 55-year-old mountain climber, was one of those caregivers. His sport and his job, as an IT company executive, took a back seat when his mother, Ida, was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease in 2007.

“So, after a 30-year career, I took early retirement² to oversee³ the last three years of her journey through the disease," Arnette says. "And as she was going through the disease, I learned a lot. I didn’t know a lot about Alzheimer’s disease before.”

After his mother’s death, Arnette felt sad and helpless. But not for long.

“I thought if I could combine my passion for climbing in a way to help educate people, to raise awareness and more tangibly⁴ to try to raise a million dollars for research funds, then this might make a difference.”

Alan Arnette, here near the summit of Carstensz Pyramid in Indonesia, is climbing the world's tallest peaks to raise Alzheimer's awareness.

Arnette decided⁵ to climb the tallest mountain on each of the world's seven continents. He called it “The 7 Summits Climb for Alzheimer’s: Memories are Everything Campaign.”

“I took a satellite phone with me and I did very extensive blogging. Almost every day, I would post a new dispatch, along with pictures and videos from each one of the climbs.”

And from the highest point on each mountain, Arnette dedicated⁶ his climb to some aspect of the disease.

“For example, in Antarctica, I dedicated it to early onset⁷. I had a good friend at age 52, she had just been diagnosed, so it was fresh in my mind. Of course, Mount Everest, I dedicated it to my mom, Ida, and to all the moms out there with Alzheimer’s disease.”

Stepping toward the mainstream⁸

Eric Hall, founder⁹ and president of the Alzheimer’s Foundation of America (AFA), says raising awareness about Alzheimer’s is the first step towards making it a mainstream disease, like cancer or diabetes¹⁰, which helps raise money for research.

“Activities such as that, the courageous¹¹, heroic individuals, that are doing extraordinary feats,or participating in various ways to raise awareness, to raise funds, that’s ultimately where we need to go because it has not become mainstream.”

The AFA focuses on providing support for Alzheimer’s patients and their families, including teenagers.

“It is true that one to four individuals caring for an individual who has Alzheimer’s disease, happens to be a teenager who every day is helping¹² out their parents in providing the hands-on care, whether it is bathing or feeding or simply sitting and holding their loved ones’ hand.”

Impacting the young

Elizabeth Alan,19, has done that. The University of South Carolina sophomore¹³ helped set up the nation’s first AFA on-campus club.

“My grandfather had Alzheimer’s," Alan says. "He actually passed away in January. When I decided to do this, I was looking at it as a method of coping after my grandfather passed away. He and I were really close. It was difficult for me to handle his passing.”

Although it was founded just a few months ago, the club already has 30 members.

“Our goal is to educate people and to volunteer with nursing homes and hospices that specialize in Alzheimer’s care. The disease, up until recently, was always referred to just as 'getting old.' I think it’s really important that people are educated and aware that Alzheimer’s is not just getting old and getting forgetful. It is a disease and there needs to be research and medications and cures developed.”

Spreading the word

That’s the message mountain climber Arnette has been spreading from the world’s highest peaks over the past 11 months on his blog.

“I call it a message of hope that we’ll find a cure. We reached 13 million people. We’ll reach a lot more people and people will be motivated to make donation to Alzheimer’s causes.”

With seven summits now behind him, Arnette plans to continue his campaign to raise awareness and money. Moving mountains, he says, to make a difference in the lives of those affected¹⁴ by Alzheimer’s disease.

1 awareness   

n.意识，觉悟，懂事，明智

参考例句：

• There is a general awareness that smoking is harmful.人们普遍认识到吸烟有害健康。
• Environmental awareness has increased over the years.这些年来人们的环境意识增强了。

2 retirement   

n.退休，退职

参考例句：

• She wanted to enjoy her retirement without being beset by financial worries.她想享受退休生活而不必为金钱担忧。
• I have to put everything away for my retirement.我必须把一切都积蓄起来以便退休后用。

3 oversee   

vt.监督，管理

参考例句：

• Soldiers oversee the food handouts.士兵们看管着救济食品。
• Use a surveyor or architect to oversee and inspect the different stages of the work.请一位房产检视员或建筑师来监督并检查不同阶段的工作。

4 tangibly   

adv.可触摸的，可触知地，明白地

参考例句：

• Suddenly the problem of future loomed tangibly for me. 突然，前途的问题明确地出现在我眼前。 来自辞典例句
• Virtue is tangibly rewarded. 善行得到具体的报答。 来自互联网

5 decided   

adj.决定了的，坚决的；明显的，明确的

参考例句：

• This gave them a decided advantage over their opponents.这使他们比对手具有明显的优势。
• There is a decided difference between British and Chinese way of greeting.英国人和中国人打招呼的方式有很明显的区别。

6 dedicated   

adj.一心一意的；献身的；热诚的

参考例句：

• He dedicated his life to the cause of education.他献身于教育事业。
• His whole energies are dedicated to improve the design.他的全部精力都放在改进这项设计上了。

7 onset   

n.进攻，袭击，开始，突然开始

参考例句：

• The drug must be taken from the onset of the infection.这种药必须在感染的最初期就开始服用。
• Our troops withstood the onset of the enemy.我们的部队抵挡住了敌人的进攻。

8 mainstream   

n.（思想或行为的）主流；adj.主流的

参考例句：

• Their views lie outside the mainstream of current medical opinion.他们的观点不属于当今医学界观点的主流。
• Polls are still largely reflects the mainstream sentiment.民调还在很大程度上反映了社会主流情绪。

9 Founder   

n.创始者，缔造者

参考例句：

• He was extolled as the founder of their Florentine school.他被称颂为佛罗伦萨画派的鼻祖。
• According to the old tradition,Romulus was the founder of Rome.按照古老的传说，罗穆卢斯是古罗马的建国者。

10 diabetes   

n.糖尿病

参考例句：

• In case of diabetes, physicians advise against the use of sugar.对于糖尿病患者，医生告诫他们不要吃糖。
• Diabetes is caused by a fault in the insulin production of the body.糖尿病是由体內胰岛素分泌失调引起的。

11 courageous   

adj.勇敢的，有胆量的

参考例句：

• We all honour courageous people.我们都尊重勇敢的人。
• He was roused to action by courageous words.豪言壮语促使他奋起行动。

12 helping   

n.食物的一份&adj.帮助人的，辅助的

参考例句：

• The poor children regularly pony up for a second helping of my hamburger. 那些可怜的孩子们总是要求我把我的汉堡包再给他们一份。
• By doing this, they may at times be helping to restore competition. 这样一来, 他在某些时候,有助于竞争的加强。

13 sophomore   

n.大学二年级生；adj.第二年的

参考例句：

• He is in his sophomore year.他在读二年级。
• I'm a college sophomore majoring in English.我是一名英语专业的大二学生。

14 affected   

adj.不自然的，假装的

参考例句：

• She showed an affected interest in our subject.她假装对我们的课题感到兴趣。
• His manners are affected.他的态度不自然。