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Teen Advocate to Speak at Family Forum
 Although only 16, Alissa Anderegg is using her talent to bring awareness to Alzheimer’s disease. In addition to speaking and singing at events to raise awareness for the debilitating disease, the Alzheimer's Association-registered advocate recently appeared in the Emmy-award winning HBO documentary "The Alzheimer's Project: Grandpa Do You Know Who I Am?" with Maria Shriver.
Why is she so passionate? It’s to honor her grandmother, Mary Fran Anderegg, who was diagnosed with the disease 8 years ago.
Allisa will be a speaker at the Alzheimer’s Association Family Forum in Rockford on Saturday, April 2. This is a half-day event for families affected by Memory Loss. Other Family Forums are coming up in Bolingbrook and Bloomington.
Here is our interview with Allisa:
Tell us a little about yourself.
I am a 16 year old high school student from the San Francisco Bay Area. I am enrolled in AP and honors classes and hope to attend a major university to study neuroscience. I have been doing musical theatre all my life and am involved in the Miss America program where my platform is Alzheimer's Awareness. I am also in National Charity League where for the past three years I have received the 100 hour volunteer service award.
What were your experiences with the disease?
My grandma Mary Fran always seemed a bit "off" to me. When I was young, I would notice how she wasn't like my other grandma, not as talkative or attentive. Grandma Mary Fran would never address me by my name (she couldn't remember it) and every five minutes would ask how old I was. Every time I would answer, yet she would still ask me several times a day. When I was eight years old, she came to live with us while my grandfather was in the hospital for surgery. During the month she was with us she'd bang on glass mirrors wondering why her reflection wouldn't talk back to her. She'd hoard items like tissue and my Beanie Babies in her purse; when I went to retrieve them she'd yell at me. I would get upset and cry because I didn't understand why she was so angry with me. The turning point came when my father, who had previously been in denial that his mother had any mental health problems, came home to find Grana Mary Fran pinning my mom to the wall, screaming at her. We were told she had Alzheimer's. My parents began researching as much as we could about the disease and would try to put their new knowledge into terms an eight year old could understand when they'd explain to me what was going on with Grandma.
How did you become involved with the Alzheimer’s disease cause?
It all began when I gave a speech about Alzheimer's to my middle school class. I was so amazed that there were so many other students in the class who had relatives with Alzheimer's as well. I knew I could use my public speaking skills gained from my involvement in musical theatre to speak as a representative for kids who are impacted by the disease. I started doing Memory Walks with my dad. I was amazed at all the support I received.
I was soon set up for an interview with HBO for their documentary about Alzheimer's. My story was chosen to be featured in "Grandpa, Do You Know Who I Am? with Maria Shriver". It was so rewarding to know that my story was helping teach kids across the nation about what they could do to connect better with their grandparents that have Alzheimer's. As the years went by, I continued to attend Memory Walks, but I would sing and speak at them as well. I embraced Alzheimer's Awareness as my platform for the Miss America's Outstanding Teen program and used my title to attend more events to speak about the disease and reach even more people.
I started a Facebook group, Alz4Kids, to provide resources for kids and teens to learn more about Alzheimer's and about what opportunities are available to volunteer. I knew that teens love Facebook and noticed the lack of Alzheimer's groups geared toward teens, so it was a perfect opportunity to help. I also founded the Alzheimer's Awareness club at my school to continue to reach out to kids my age. This past fall, I had the remarkable opportunity to be a co-chair of Maria Shriver's March on Alzheimer's in her annual Women's Conference. It was amazing to be apart of such a great event with celebrities like Paula Deen, Jane Fonda, Peter Gallagher, and so many more. Being chosen to speak for the conference, I was so blessed to attend various breakout sessions to learn to be my best self.
When you attend college what will you be majoring in and Why?
I love volunteering with children and am very interested in science, especially the brain because of Alzheimer's, so I would love to study to be a pediatric neurosurgeon.
How has your life changed since we saw you in the HBO series?
Being a part of the HBO series was such an amazing experience. I love getting emails about people's personal stories with Alzheimer's and how the documentary has helped them. It's so special for me when I'm recognized at Alzheimer's functions and told how the documentary has impacted people's lives. I have been so grateful for the experiences that I have been able to have as a result of my involvement in the documentary.
Why is it important for people to volunteer especially younger people or why is it important for you?
We are the future of advocacy! Teens need to realize that there is a great chance that their own parents will have Alzheimer's. More education is needed to inform the public that Alzheimer's is not just about memory loss and is much more serious.
Click here to register for a Family Forum near you.
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