Former pastor: 'My ministry is Alzheimer's'
Daily MessengerSep 15, 2017
Last year, at age 62, when her diagnosis showed early-stage Alzheimer's, she became even more determined to fight the disease -- for herself and for others.
Alzheimer's forced Hummel into early retirement from her career as a pastor. But her advocacy put her in the spotlight, nationally and locally. She is a speaker and advisor with the
Hummel kayaks, swims, golfs and sings in a band called Country Magic. Last October, she was inducted into the
Hummel's story and the stories of many others living with Alzheimer's are significant, said
The Canandaigua Walk to be held at
Considered an epidemic, Alzheimer's is the only cause of death in the top 10 in America that cannot be prevented, cured or slowed, according to the
The fundraising goal for the Canandaigua Walk is
Candace urged people to participate. People can sign up to be on a team or make a donation.
Hummel, who is a member of the
"Most people in a doctoral program can rattle off the books they've read, but all I could tell you was the first three courses I'd taken," she said. "I could only name one of my professors. I didn't remember any of my fellow students. I would see people whom I knew in the grocery store and walk right by them because I didn't recognize them. It was terrifying because I was in the middle of this program that I'd worked so hard to complete."
Hummel went from one doctor to another as they tried to determine what was wrong. No one suspected Alzheimer's because she was so young. There were several dead ends as she underwent a slew of tests. One doctor thought her symptoms were from stress of running a parish and raising a family. Another doctor suspected a head injury she sustained as a child, and others blamed menopause or not getting enough sleep.
Then, after moving to a new pastorate in
"I got only partway through the song before tears started rolling down my face. How could I be a pastor when I couldn't even name the books in the Bible? It would be as if a doctor couldn't remember the bones in the body. The basic building blocks of my faith were gone. I had my doctorate by that point, but I didn't feel smart," Hummel said in the interview for Woman's Day.
Hummel was finally diagnosed with MCI in the spring of 2011, at age 57. She eventually had to give up her career as a pastor. Seeing an ad in the local paper for an eight-week course sponsored by the
She is not on medication because that would exclude her from the study. She takes care to get enough sleep and to exercise every day, and she eats a plant-based diet that has been shown to slow cognitive decline.
She eats a salad every day, drinks a glass of red wine every night, and eats plenty of of salmon (for omega-3 fatty acids) plus a handful of nuts once or twice a day. She swims three times a week, tracks her steps with a fitness tracker and goes kayaking with friends as often as possible. She audits classes at
As she said for Woman's Day: "I've taken 30 so far, including French last semester. I usually don't remember squat, but I love it."
If you go
WHAT: 2017 Walk to End Alzheimer's
WHEN:
WHERE:
DETAILS: Fundraiser benefits
___
(c)2017 Daily Messenger, Canandaigua, N.Y.
Visit Daily Messenger, Canandaigua, N.Y. at www.MPNnow.com
Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.