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Tennesseans from Memphis to Tullahoma to Bristol are invited to help save lives and raise awareness about Silver Alert during the Alzheimer’s Tennessee 500 Statewide Race to Make Alzheimer’s a Memory.

Beginning Tue, Sept 19 through Fri, Sept. 22, an official Purple Pace Car will make a 500-mile trip across the state, stopping at 12 Walmart stores along the way. Everyone is invited to these 12 regional Pit Stop Celebrations outside Walmart stores that will feature fun, food, prizes, entertainment – and perhaps most importantly, information about how to prepare and respond when a loved one with memory loss gets lost.

Six out of ten individuals with dementia will wander. More than 200 vulnerable, missing Tennesseans have been found safe since Alzheimer’s Tennessee volunteer advocates successfully passed Tennessee’s new Silver Alert Law that went into effect in 2021. Alzheimer’s Tennessee and Walmart are working together to distribute “Silver Alert Kits” with lifesaving information and tools to help rescuers find missing loved ones.

“Silver Alerts are lifesaving and critical to the safety of our Tennessee seniors. All of us need to be aware of who is in need of our help to find their way home safely,” Janice Wade-Whitehead, Alzheimer’s Tennessee CEO and President explained. “And with Walmart’s help, we are working to make sure families in our communities are prepared for these emergency situations before they happen. It is the worst thing in the world to realize you do not know where your loved one is, but if you have key information ready in a completed Silver Alert Kit, you can immediately help law enforcement officers start searching.”

The Alzheimer’s Tennessee Purple Pace Car will “connect” the Pit Stops during its 500-mile trip with stops at Walmart in Collierville just outside of Memphis, Jackson, Dickson, Murfreesboro, Cookeville, Tullahoma, Ooltewah, Alcoa, Knoxville, Morristown, Greeneville and Bristol. Donating Walmart stores will be entered into drawings for prizes. Each Pit Stop celebration is unique – with food trucks and festivities.

The Alzheimer’s Tennessee 500 has already started with an online “race” to raise awareness and funds at www.alzTennessee.org/500. Sponsors Hill & Hill Financial based in Chattanooga, West Chevrolet in Alcoa, Walmart, and the Tennessee Clerks of Court have helped to make the event possible. The public can also “ride along” virtually by following on Facebook at www.Facebook.com/alzTN.

“So many of us at Walmart have been touched by Alzheimer’s disease,” Boyce Smith, retired Walmart Pickup Market eCommerce Manager, shared. “Whether our own families are struggling with memory loss – or our customers and their families, we think it’s important to do what we can to show our support. Alzheimer’s Tennessee is a great resource for our state, and we are just proud to be able to give back.”

More than 120,000 Tennesseans and their families are currently living with Alzheimer’s disease. Alzheimer’s is ranked as the sixth leading cause of death in the United States, but statistics show that the brain disease may rank third, just behind heart disease and cancer. For every individual living with the disease, an average of four family members, friends and neighbors serve as caregivers who need support, and guidance.

Alzheimer’s Tennessee has six regional offices throughout the state, including Jackson, Franklin, Tullahoma, Cookeville, Knoxville (headquarters since 1983) and Johnson City. Donors appreciate that 85 cents of every dollar donated directly funds the Alzheimer’s Tennessee Mission: To serve those facing Alzheimer’s disease and related dementias, to promote brain health through education, and to champion global research, prevention and treatment efforts. For more information, please visit www.alzTennessee.org or call toll-free statewide 888.326.9888.