Purple Run for a Cure! 2000+ Ran for Alzheimer’s Awareness hosted by Forum Mall
Purple Run for a Cure! 2000+ Ran for Alzheimer’s Awareness hosted by Forum Mall on Sunday 24, to commemorate ‘World Alzheimer’s Month’
Mangaluru: Being a lazy Sunday while many were still in bed, some snoring, some cuddling with their sweethearts on the bed- but over thousands of energetic young and old men and women of Mangaluru and beyond, woke to the alarm set to be in time to join in the “Purple Run” organized by Forum Fiza Mall-Mangaluru to bring awareness about Alzheimer’s disease. September being observed as an “Alzheimer’s Month”, this Run was very befitting to mark ‘World Alzheimer’s Day’ which is observed every year on 21st September. As they say “Better Late Than Never”, this “Purple Run” held few days later, which was aimed at spreading the word on Alzheimer’s disease attracted many citizens, young and old. all running for a good cause.
Taking on a running challenge is a fantastic way not only to raise funds but you’ll also be promoting better health and bring awareness about a disease, and here we are talking about Alzheimer’s disease. After all, exercise and keeping healthy are two of the best things you can do to keep your ticker ticking on! Whether you’re planning on holding your own event, doing a 3 km, 5km, 10 km or a 21 km challenge, or really testing yourself in a marathon, you can make fundraising easy by doing it for better health, and also bringing awareness among the public about various diseases like Alzheimer’s , Cancer, Diabetes, Heart Attacks, and other illness.
The First category of ‘Purple Run”, the 21 Km run was flagged off at 5.30 am, followed by the 10 km, 5 km and 3 km- the categories saw children, youth, men and women- and also seniors all enthusiastically taking part and cheering up throughout the run. The roads of Mangaluru will be graced by some of the finest long-distance athletes from across the city along with other running enthusiasts who will put their best foot forward to achieve the desired goals. It was indeed a Run for a Good Cause- and every drop of sweat from the participants counted. Completing a Run is a great achievement for anybody. However, the possibility of changing somebody’s life being added to every step in your run can give you a sense of pride like no other.
These thousand plus young men and women who took part in the “Run ” did make a difference. They believed and became the change that they wanted to see. They all choose to run with a purpose. They inspired their friends, family and others like themselves to join in the Run for a good cause. For some runners it was quite hectic and tiresome to cover the entire distance by running-so many chose their gears from -Running to Jogging-to Walking, but they all made it to the end point, bubbling with enthusiasm, and pride-that they ran for a good cause.
After all it was 5 Malls, 4 Cities, 1 Run for Alzheimer’s- hosted by Forum group which was India’s 1st Ever Run for Alzheimer’s Awareness named “The Purple Run 2017”. The Forum Mall in Koramangala-Bengaluru, The Forum Neighbourhood Mall in Whitefield, The Forum Vijaya Mall in Chennai and The Forum Sujana Mall in Hyderabad. With over 10,000 people running for Alzheimer’s Awareness, at the same time, all over South India, this was the first of its kind. And for the Run organized here in mangaluru, Kudos to the Management of Forum Fiza Mall- Mangaluru and organizing committee of this Run for their great initiative, which ended up in a big success and received huge applauds from the participants and crowd that thronged the Forum Mall campus.
The Run was hosted in association with NIMHANS-Bengaluru. The winners in the Run were awarded prizes during the closing ceremony graced by various dignitaries namely- MLA Moideen Bawa; MCC Mayor Kavitha Sanil; Diwakar- Area Ward MCC Corporator; Pradeep Pai-MD, Hangyo Ice Creams; Deepak Ramani- Franchise owner of Soch; B M Farooq- Chairman and Managing Director of Fiza Group; and Fayaz M H, Assistant Centre Manager of Forum Mall. Addressing the gathering MLA Moideen Bawa said, “Alzheimer’s, the most common form of dementia, is the 5th leading cause of death in people over 55 years of age, and in India, more than 4 million people suffer from various forms of this illness. Despite this, there’s a stigma attached to mental illnesses amongst us. During vintage years, not many people were affected with Alzheimer’s, but now with our lifestyle, even young people are diagnosed with Alzheimer’s. This initiative by Forum Mall in organizing this Run will surely bring awareness about Alzheimer’ so that people will change their lifestyle for their better health”.
Also speaking, Fayaz M H, Assistant Centre Manager of Forum Mall said, “Since its inception, the Forum group has been conducting many programmes for good causes. The Purple Run is one-of-a-kind which has created awareness of Alzheimer’s. Today we saw a large number of participants running for a good cause. There are cash prizes for over Rs. 6 lakhs and gift hampers which we are handing over to the winners; the highest being Rs.35,000/- for the first place in the 21km run, and Rs.20,000/- for the 10km run. The runners in the 3km and 5km categories will win gift hampers. And remember, this Run was not for just the trained people-This Run was for everyone! And looking at the participants, we have proved it. Thanks for making this First ever kind of Run a grand success”. Mayor Kavitha Sanil and B M Farooq also spoke and briefed about Alzheimer’s and urged the audience to start a healthy lifestyle and live a healthy life. The event was compered by Anuragh Bangera, a Coastalwood actor, who entertained the crowd with his punchlines and professionalism. There were a few games, among which was a quiz, where the participants had to name the stores in Forum Mall- the person who pointed out a large number of stores, won the prize.
Prior to the Run, few days ago, Dr Prof A Thrimoorthy, head of the department of psychiatric social work of NIMHANS said, ” Alzheimer’s disease is a disorder of the nervous system that progressively affects memory and brain functions.The disease is the most common form of dementia, which results in the loss of intellectual and social skills in an individual. People in the beginning stages of Alzheimer’s are known to experience confusion, difficulty in remembering incidences and people. The disease sets in gradually and affects the individual progressively resulting in a steady decline in memory, mental functions, social-cognitive skills and increased confusion.”
“Alzheimer’s is caused by brain cell death. It is a neurodegenerative disease, which means there is progressive brain cell death that happens over a course of time. The total brain size shrinks with Alzheimer’s – the tissue has progressively fewer nerve cells and connections. The very nature of the symptoms can be confusing for both a patient and the people around them, with different levels of severity. For this reason, and because symptoms could signal any of a number of diagnoses, it is always worthwhile seeing a doctor,” added Dr Thrimoorthy. So knowing the ill effects of Alzheimer’s let us all join to make “Mangaluru an Alzheimer’s Free City” and also make it an “Alzheimer’s/Dementia Friendly!
