On Saturday, August 15, I’ll ride a metric century, 62 miles, in the Ride to End Alzheimer’s to raise money for Alzheimer’s research. It’s part of a nationwide effort, and I’d be grateful for your support.

Here’s why.

Alzheimer’s hasn’t touched my immediate family. It has touched almost everyone around me.

I want to be upfront about something: Alzheimer’s hasn’t affected my immediate family directly. I don’t have one defining story about a parent or grandparent lost to this disease. Instead, I have a growing list of people I care about whose lives have been changed by it.

Over the past few years, I’ve watched several longtime friends lose their parents to Alzheimer’s, including the family who lived next door while I was growing up – people who were part of my childhood. I have friends who have put careers and personal plans on hold to care for a parent at home full time. And right now, I have coworkers quietly carrying the weight of watching a parent, or even a sibling, decline from this disease while still showing up to work every day.

None of this is my story to tell in detail. It’s theirs. But I’ve seen enough, up close, to know that Alzheimer’s doesn’t just affect the person diagnosed. It reshapes entire families and circles of friends, often in ways most people never see.

That’s the thing about Alzheimer’s: you don’t have to have the disease, or even be related to someone who does, to feel its impact. Nearly 7 million Americans are living with Alzheimer’s today, making it one of the leading causes of death in the United States. Odds are, it’s already touched someone in your life, whether you’ve talked about it or not.

Bill Ritter’s story

There’s also a more public reason I’m riding this year.

Bill Ritter has been a colleague and friend for years. New Yorkers know him as the trusted, steady face of Eyewitness News – a journalist who built a career on integrity, compassion, and warmth.

In June, Bill stepped away from the anchor desk after sharing, in his own words:

“After a series of tests, my doctors have told me I have Alzheimer’s. It’s early-stage Alzheimer’s, and they say the treatments I’m getting are keeping it at bay. For now. But there is no guarantee, because there’s no cure yet for Alzheimer’s.”

What many people don’t know is that this isn’t Bill’s first experience with the disease. His father died of Alzheimer’s in 1998, and Bill has spent years helping raise awareness and support research.

Now he’s living the other side of the story. And, true to who he is as a journalist, he’s chosen to tell it openly and honestly so the rest of us can better understand what patients and families are facing.

He’s not alone, and that’s part of what has made this moment feel different.

In just the past few weeks, Capt. Chesley “Sully” Sullenberger, the Miracle on the Hudson pilot, revealed his own early-stage diagnosis. Actor Danny Glover also shared that he’s been living with Alzheimer’s since 2023. When people this recognizable, from such different walks of life, begin telling remarkably similar stories at nearly the same time, it underscores just how widespread this disease has become. Today, nearly 7 million Americans are living with Alzheimer’s, a number researchers expect to double by 2060 if nothing changes.

There is real reason for hope, though.

Just this month, researchers at the Alzheimer’s Association International Conference presented findings showing that a simple blood test may be able to predict a person’s risk of developing Alzheimer’s years before symptoms appear, potentially allowing treatment and intervention to begin much earlier. Bill himself interviewed the study’s lead author to help explain what this breakthrough could mean.

Those are exactly the kinds of advances that sustained research funding makes possible.

Bill deserves to see more breakthroughs like that. So does everyone else I’ve mentioned.

Why your donation matters

Right now, Alzheimer’s researchers aren’t short on ideas—they’re short on funding.

The Alzheimer’s Association currently has more than $490 million invested in over 1,220 research projects across 59 countries. That work includes earlier detection, better treatments, and studies like the U.S. POINTER trial, which has shown that healthy lifestyle changes can help reduce the risk of cognitive decline.

Every dollar raised through rides like this one helps move that work forward.

About the ride

I’ve technically ridden a metric century before, but it wasn’t intentional.

I accidentally rode 62 miles one day without realizing how far I’d gone, and by the end I was completely spent.

This time, I’m doing it on purpose.

I’ve been steadily building distance, ride by ride, while also working to get into better shape along the way. This week alone, I’ve logged more than 40 miles across two back-to-back day rides, and later this week I’m aiming for a single ride of 40 to 50 miles. The goal isn’t simply to cross the finish line on August 15. It’s to arrive prepared enough to enjoy the experience instead of just surviving it.

Why I’m asking

I’m riding for the friends who’ve lost parents.

For the friends who’ve rearranged their entire lives to become caregivers.

For the coworkers who spend every workday worrying about someone they love.

For Bill. For Sully. For Danny.

And for the millions of families living this story without cameras pointed at them.

Most of all, I’m riding for the day when an Alzheimer’s diagnosis no longer feels like the beginning of an ending.

If you’re able, I’d be grateful for your support.

Donate here: https://act.alz.org/site/TR?fr_id=20116&pg=personal&px=27409046

Thank you for taking the time to read this, and for considering a donation.

See you at mile 62.