Scaling Heights to Cure Alzheimer’s

Posted November 9, 2010

Mountaineer to Raise Awareness and Research Funding for Alzheimer’s by Climbing the Highest Summit on the World’s Seven Continents

 

Boston, Mass – Embarking on a year-long challenge that he hopes will end at the top of the Carstensz Pyramid, mountain climber and Alzheimer’s disease advocate Alan Arnette will take on the greater challenge of raising money for research and public awareness of Alzheimer’s disease, the nation’s sixth most deadly disease.

“The mental and physical demands of scaling seemingly insurmountable peaks are not unlike the everyday challenges faced by those living with Alzheimer’s disease and their caregivers,” said Arnette, who cared for his mother with Alzheimer’s until her death last year. “Both involve understanding personal limitations, reaching out for support and taking steps daily on a very long road.”

All of the money Arnette raises on his year-long campaign – The 7 Summits Climb for Alzheimer’s: Memories are Everything – will go to Cure Alzheimer’s Fund™, a non-profit organization dedicated to raising money for targeted research with the highest probability of slowing, stopping or reversing Alzheimer’s disease.

The Alzheimer’s Immunotherapy Program of Janssen Alzheimer Immunotherapy and Pfizer Inc. is funding Arnette’s climbs. To support Arnette in raising funds for Cure Alzheimer’s Fund please visit https://curealz.org/donate/.

“Research is the key to solving the complexities of Alzheimer’s disease and Alan Arnette’s courageous fundraising efforts will help the Alzheimer’s community come one step closer to finding a cure,” said Tim Armour, President of the Cure Alzheimer’s Fund™.

“What are our life experiences and adventures about if not to create life-long memories that we can share and embellish, year after year, with friends and family? Memories are everything,” said Arnette, whose high-altitude climbs can be followed on Climb4AD.com and Facebook.com/Climb4AD.

An accomplished climber, Arnette retired from his job with a leading technology company to care for his mother, Ida, when she was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s. Since then, 54-year-old advocate has worked to raise money for this disease that has no known cure. With The 7 Summits Climb for Alzheimer’s, he hopes to raise awareness of the impact of the disease and is also striving to raise $1 million for research.

Arnette departs on the first of his seven climbs on November 24, 2010. The first peak is the 16,067-foot (4897 meter) Mt. Vinson Massif in Antarctica. By December 2011, he intends to reach the summits of:

  • Aconcagua, Argentina, South America – 22,841ft/6,926 m
  • Everest, Nepal, Asia – 29,035 ft/8,850 m
  • Denali, Alaska, North America – 20,320 ft/6,194 m
  • Elbrus, Russia, Europe – 18,481 ft/5,633 m
  • Kilimanjaro, Tanzania, Africa – 19,340 ft/ 5,896 m
  • Carstensz Pyramid, Indonesia, Oceania – 16,023 ft/4,884 m

Arnette is also taking on the extended challenge of climbing an eighth mountain, Mt. Kosciuszko in Australia, which is part of the Oceania continent.