When a class assignment was recently announced to do a fundraiser to support a local charity, Savanah Eagen immediately thought of her Nana and the Alzheimer’s Society of Chatham-Kent.
The 14-year-old Chatham girl sees the impact of Alzheimer’s disease every day, because she and her mother Amanda Eagen live with her Nana – Penny Eagen, who was diagnosed with the disease five years ago – to help care for her.
That has also meant watching the disease slowly take away the Nana she knew.
“Before my Nana and I used to hang out all the time, we had a really close bond,” Savanah said.
She added that began to change when her Nana was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease.
Savanah saw her Nana start to forget how to do things and they stopped going for walks together because her Nana didn’t know her way.
She said it’s not easy living with someone who has Alzheimer’s disease.
“I find it challenging, because you can’t just tell her something once. You’ve got to remind her,” Savanah said.
The teen is participating in the Kingdom Assignment, which sees students in the St. Clair Catholic District School Board receive some seed money to use their talents to raise money for a good cause.
Savanah decided to make and sell cake pops to raise funds for the day program her Nana attends at the Alzheimer Society in Chatham.
The teen visited the day program, before the COVID-19 pandemic hit, and has seen the activities, including making crafts and baking, that her Nana is able to do.
The day program is also beneficial to Savanah’s family.
“It’s definitely been a blessing, because it gives us a break,” said Savanah’s mother Amanda. “(My mom) loves going there. . . she has so much fun there.”
Savanah has set a goal of raising $500 by the time the Kingdom project is due on April 14. She wants the money to go towards buying more supplies for the day program.
She is well on her way to her goal, raising about $400 in less than a week.
Savanah is surprised at the response, noting she wrote a description of the fundraiser that was posted on her mother’s Facebook page.
She was impressed when an anonymous person, who didn’t want any cake pops, donated $100.
“I didn’t think when I started I would get a whole lot of people,” Savanah said. “It’s amazing.”
Those interested in supporting Savanah’s fundraiser can find details on Amanda Eagen’s Facebook page.