A walk (or jog) to remember this weekend

PEOPLE of all ages are getting ready for this year’s Geelong Memory Walk and Jog, to be held this Sunday, March 14, and registrations are still open.

The course at Eastern Park is family-friendly and suitable for all levels of fitness.

You can choose to take part as an individual or get a team together, and select whether you take part in a 2km or 4.5km walk, or 7km run.

There are an estimated 120,900 people living with dementia in Victoria. With that figure projected to increase to about 301,000 by 2058, events such as Memory Walk and Jog play an important role not only in funding support, but also in raising awareness of dementia.

Funds raised through the Memory Walk and Jog series help provide invaluable support, education and resources for people living with dementia in Australia, their carers, families and friends.

There are 17 Memory Walk and Jog events planned across Australia in 2021, with each event offering fun for people of all ages and abilities.

The safety and wellbeing of Memory Walk and Jog participants, volunteers and staff is Dementia Australia’s top priority at these events.

The team is constantly monitoring the evolving situation with COVID-19, and remains in communication with the relevant federal, state and local authorities.

A robust COVIDSafe plan has been tailored for each individual event and will be adapted as needed closer to the date of the event.

Register for the Geelong Memory Walk & Jog event, which starts at 7am, at memorywalk.com.au/event/geelong/home, or find out about the other events planned across Australia at memorywalk.com.au.

Dementia Australia is the source of trusted information, education and services for the estimated half a million Australians living with dementia, and the almost 1.6 million people involved in their care.

For support, please contact the National Dementia Helpline on 1800 100 500. An interpreter service is available and the Helpline is open 8am to 8pm Monday to Friday, excluding public holidays.

People looking for information can also head to dementia.org.au.