Alzheimers and Dementia Blog - Alzheimers Association of Northern California and Northern Nevada Blog

Erica and Family 0

Longtime Volunteer from San Jose Shares Her Story

Erica Perez-Chavez is a stay-at-home mother of three from San Jose. She was raised by her great grandparents Maria and Manuel. Erica was six months pregnant when she lost her great grandmother to Alzheimer’s in 2004. She knew nothing about the disease other than the fact that it took the only mother she’d ever known.

Debbie and Her Mom 0

A Bay Area Alzheimer’s Advocate Shares Her Story

My advocacy work is personal. My mother died as a result of Alzheimer’s on October 4, 2009. I was there with her every day and every step of the way. My family had always been very close knit and my mother meant the world to me. I didn’t think that I would be able to live without her. It broke my heart into a million pieces and hurt like hell to watch this cruel disease erase my mother’s memory of those she loved and then kill her.

Researcher 0

Watch: 2016 Funded Researcher Carlos Rodriguez-Ortiz, Ph.D.

Dr. Carlos Rodriguez-Ortiz of UC Merced was recently awarded a $150,000 research grant from the Alzheimer’s Association. Bill Fisher, CEO of the Northern California and Northern Nevada chapter, presented the check at the campus, along with a team of supporters and advocates. Dr. Rodriguez Ortiz is studying a molecule called miR181, which may be an important new factor in the cause of Alzheimer’s disease. In this video, he talks about his quest to find information that will lead to a cure.