By Dean Close, Editor
To most people who see them, the photos of Katie Folkmann with her grandfathers look just like every others: A little girl in the arms of a man in overalls standing in front of a hog shed, sitting at the table or in an easy chair, laughing and reading, or reaching up from the floor to the grandpa reaching down for a hug.
And yet, says the 2018 Benton County Fair Queen, those photos don't show the full story – the story of how Alzheimer's was already stealing her grandpas from her.
Grandpa Archie Gaddis passed away nine days after Katie's 11th birthday; Grandpa Richard Folkmann died in 2014, and would have been 90 on Sept. 26.
“The only version I knew of them, and remember, is when they were sick,” says Katie, who then repeats a quote often associated with the disease: “One of the hardest things you will ever have to do, my dear, is to grieve the loss of a person who is still alive.”
And it's not just two grandfathers she has lost; Katie counts as many as 10 other relatives who have suffered from the disease.
Just three days after what would have been Grandpa Folmann's 90th birthday, Katie will participate in the Sept. 29 Walk to End Alzheimer's in Cedar Rapids.
The Alzheimer's Association estimates that 5.7 million Americans are facing the illness, including 200,000 who are under age 65 and facing early-onset Alzheimer's.
See Katie's Alzheimer's Walk page and learn how to donate HERE.
See more information from the Alzheimer's Association HERE.
See the National Institutes of Health Alzheimer's Fact Sheet HERE.
By Dean Close, Editor
To most people who see them, the photos of Katie Folkmann with her grandfathers look just like every others: A little girl in the arms of a man in overalls standing in front of a hog shed, sitting at the table or in an easy chair, laughing and reading, or reaching up from the floor to the grandpa reaching down for a hug.
And yet, says the 2018 Benton County Fair Queen, those photos don't show the full story – the story of how Alzheimer's was already stealing her grandpas from her.
Grandpa Archie Gaddis passed away nine days after Katie's 11th birthday; Grandpa Richard Folkmann died in 2014, and would have been 90 on Sept. 26.
“The only version I knew of them, and remember, is when they were sick,” says Katie, who then repeats a quote often associated with the disease: “One of the hardest things you will ever have to do, my dear, is to grieve the loss of a person who is still alive.”
And it's not just two grandfathers she has lost; Katie counts as many as 10 other relatives who have suffered from the disease.
Just three days after what would have been Grandpa Folmann's 90th birthday, Katie will participate in the Sept. 29 Walk to End Alzheimer's in Cedar Rapids.
The Alzheimer's Association estimates that 5.7 million Americans are facing the illness, including 200,000 who are under age 65 and facing early-onset Alzheimer's.
See Katie's Alzheimer's Walk page and learn how to donate HERE.
See more information from the Alzheimer's Association HERE.
See the National Institutes of Health Alzheimer's Fact Sheet HERE.
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