Sara Tirner

What inspired you to volunteer your time and talents with the UW Initiative to End Alzheimer’s?

“Alzheimer’s disease (AD) slowly strips away one’s agency. My mother and both grandmothers lived with dementia as have many other family members. Having first hand experience as my parents’ live-in caregiver at the end of their lives, I can attest to the financial impact and emotional burden this disease not only takes on the individual living with AD, but the entire family. As a result, I was happy to become a participant in the Wisconsin Alzheimer’s Disease Research Center’s (ADRC) Clinical Core study. That soon led to my participation in other studies, and in 2019 I joined the UW Initiative to End Alzheimer’s (IEA) Board of Visitors. AD is a very complex disease, and as a result, it will take lots of support to find better ways to avoid, treat and eventually cure. I’m honored to support the incredible research happening at the UW.”