MANSFIELD — Richard Holley was from Hillsboro in southern Ohio. But his face and memory shined brightly in the Promise Garden in Mansfield.
His daughter, Charlene, and other family members and friends walked in his honor in the Alzheimer’s Association North Central Ohio Walk to End Alzheimer’s, sponsored by the Alzheimer’s Association Northwest Ohio Chapter.
Because of COVID-19, the association asked participants to walk as individuals or in small groups in neighborhoods, trails and parks instead of assembling a large crowd.
The Promise Garden is a representation of various colors of flowers that represent people’s connection to the disease, including those who have died from the illness, those living it, caregivers assisting those with it and those committed to curing it.
The Walk to End Alzheimer’s raises funds for Alzheimer’s research, care and support. Money from the Walk allows the Alzheimer’s Association to offer support and education services for free.
In Northwest Ohio, 32,000 individuals age 65 and older live with Alzheimer’s disease. An additional 96,000 individuals care for them. More than five million Americans are living with Alzheimer’s, a number projected to rise to nearly 14 million in the next 30 years.
After walking on the Richland B&O Bike Trail, Team Oak Grove, gathered at the colorful garden arranged at Cook Road and Dickson Avenue.
Charlene Holley, the dietary manager at Oak Grove Manor in Mansfield, said her father died two years ago at age 74 from Alzheimer’s, the sixth leading cause of death in the United States.
Richard Holley worked at Consolidated Freightways, though he was able to retire at age 55.
“He was just a wonderful man,” Charlene Holley said. “He was good to everybody. He took in people, my cousins, he acted like he was there dad. He was just a great man. Very funny, witty.”
“He had (Alzheimer’s) for a couple of years before it took him,” she said. “We just are walking today to honor him and in the memory of a good man.”
The Alzheimer’s Association Northwest Ohio Chapter serves 24 counties, including Richland, Crawford, Ashland and Knox counties.
