About Us
Stop Alzheimer’s Now was initially founded in 2013 by Shaun and Kristin McDuffee to increase awareness of the disease and the catastrophic affect it is having on families all over the world. Shaun lost both of his parents to Alzheimer’s in 2017 but “lost” them years before due to the illness.
When my parents were initially diagnosed with the disease I didn’t understand it, and there was very little information out there. People didn’t talk about the disease, yet everywhere I looked people were being impacted, or knew people being impacted. It a horrible disease as it steals the dignity of those afflicted and places a huge burden on the caregivers.” -Shaun McDuffee, Founder of SAN
Shaun began looking to make a difference and wanted to give money to organizations fighting to find a cure for the disease. He began looking into the large, national associations supporting Alzheimer's, and as a Financial Advisor he was interested in their financials. While recognizing their great work and the worthy cause each organization was supporting, Shaun was surprised to learn how much of the money raised actually went to research. Often times, he found, a significant percentage of the money went toward operations or other costs for the organizations. Because of this, he and his wife Kristin decided to start the Stop Alzheimer’s Now Foundation (SAN) with the goal of 100% of money raised going directly to research institutions and key researchers fighting to find a cure!
What We Do
Our focus as an organization is providing funds to researchers with Alzheimer's-related projects they believe in, but are unable to secure funding from the larger pools of money like the NIH. They often need initial funds to get started and establish proof of concept before they can secure larger grants, and this is the space that SAN willingly fills as a sort of “angel research funding” mechanism for top researchers around the country.
To date, the foundation has been able to fund research projects at University of Kansas, University of Florida, and Temple University. In 2020, SAN co-founded an endowed research chair at Temple University focusing on higher risk, higher reward research projects. Since 2013, Stop Alzheimer’s Now has raised nearly $500,000.00 for Alzheimer's research.
Most research points to lifestyle and diet as key contributors in staving off the disease. Because of this, SAN has chosen to focus our efforts on partnering with two major active communities: pickleball and cycling. Both of these activities are massively expanding in participation and passion, and these communities have expressed a strong interest in helping us fund a cure!
If you are interested in hosting a local event, please email stopalzheimersnow@gmail.com.
To date, the foundation has been able to fund research projects at University of Kansas, University of Florida, and Temple University. In 2020, SAN co-founded an endowed research chair at Temple University focusing on higher risk, higher reward research projects. Since 2013, Stop Alzheimer’s Now has raised nearly $500,000.00 for Alzheimer's research.
Most research points to lifestyle and diet as key contributors in staving off the disease. Because of this, SAN has chosen to focus our efforts on partnering with two major active communities: pickleball and cycling. Both of these activities are massively expanding in participation and passion, and these communities have expressed a strong interest in helping us fund a cure!
If you are interested in hosting a local event, please email stopalzheimersnow@gmail.com.
Walk Across the USAAfter Shaun McDuffee founded Stop Alzheimer's Now, his initial goal was to walk across the United States to raise awareness for Alzheimer's, and as he and a group of co-workers began their first 108 mile trek from Cape Cod to Rhode Island they encountered many people with their own stories of how the disease had impacted their lives. Over the years the goal changed from walking across the country to walking in many states as possible to raise awareness and funds for the cause. Before shifting focus, SAN walked in 17 states totaling over 1000 miles and half a million dollars!
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1021 MILES WALKED
17 STATES
$500,000 RAISED FOR RESEARCH
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Cape Cod to Tiverton, RI
108 miles |
South Beach Miami to Jupiter Island
104 miles |
Kentucky Bourbon Trail
105 miles |
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Newfields, NH to Quechee, VT
105 miles |
Pensacola, FL to MS border
105 miles |
Brennan, ID to Spokane, WA
104 miles |
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Gilbert, AZ to Glendale, AZ
56 miles |
Minneapolis-St. Paul, MN
51 miles |
Tierra Verde to Indian Rocks Beach, FL
30 miles |
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Higgins Beach to Ogunquit, ME
50 miles |
Minneapolis-St. Paul, MN
5 miles |
NC Outer Banks
60 miles |
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Learn more about the Walk Across the USA initiative.
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