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Roll for a Reason Gala
Watching someone that you love struggle with dementia is heart-wrenching. A once fully functioning person is suddenly and sadly robbed of their thought processes. Dementia, such as Alzheimer’s, causes memory impairment and the inability to plan and initiate complex behavior.
One local organization, Clear Thoughts Foundation (CTF), is doing its part to make a difference in the battle against dementia with a mission to fund the discovery of breakthrough drugs and novel treatments to eliminate this debilitating disease.
CTF was founded in 2010 by siblings Hayley and Matthew Jameson and longtime friend Sharon Sippel after watching their father, Don ‘DJ’ Jameson, suffer through the long and painful road of dementia.
“CTF has grown since our humble beginnings of bake sales, jewelry sale fundraisers, and website launch parties in 2010. Today, we have a working board of 17 members and advisors, a full-time executive director, annual events, and community awareness opportunities. But most importantly, we have remained laser-focused on our mission by growing our support for research and launching CTF’s collaborative cohort in 2020, the CTF Consortium. We are proud to be funding this cohesive cohort that works to accelerate research findings faster than traditional siloed models while multiplying the impact of our donors’ dollars! All of us at CTF continue to hear new stories from individuals and families about the devastation dementia has had on their lives. Sadly, as diagnosis rates have risen over the past 13 years since CTF’s inception, so have the number of stories we hear. That is why this research is so vital and needs everyone’s support. The only way we can combat this disease is to join in raising funds – funds required for desperately needed treatments and cures. I believe that if we work together, we can one day see a world free of dementia,” said Hayley D. Jameson, CTF founder and president.
“We are always looking to the future and analyzing what cutting-edge therapeutics/drugs are on the horizon. We feel we have positioned ourselves to make the most impact possible through the CTF Consortium. We will remain focused on funding the brilliant researchers within Dr. Robert Friedlander, Dr. Oscar Lopez, and Dr. Amantha Thathiah. We would love to add more researchers to this cohort in the future, but more funding is needed,” said Cait Fenello, CTF’s executive director.
Next month, CTF is hosting its annual fundraising event, the Roll for a Reason Gala. The festivities will be held from 7:30-11 p.m. on Saturday, November 4, at J. Verno Studios on Pittsburgh’s South Side. “It is our largest fundraiser of the year, where 350+ attendees enjoy a Monte Carlo Casino Night featuring casino and trivia games, performance art by Cody Sabol & Kate Schoeb; live magic by Eric Russell; music by Take Two; evening theme song performed by Keely Singer; raffle auctions, hors d’oeuvres and more. We hold this one-of-a-kind event to continue raising funds for our collaborative research, the CTF Consortium. It is a great night for an even greater cause,” Ms. Fenello said.
In addition to funding research and holding various annual events, CTF also offers a podcast called “Dementia Uncovered.” Learn from industry experts, impacted individuals, and researchers about the disease and what we can do to eliminate it! Interested listeners can check out episodes on their website at https://clearthoughtsfoundation.org/dementia-uncovered-podcast/ or on their favorite podcast apps: Apple, Spotify, Google, iheartradio, and Spreaker.
For more information on CTF and their Roll for a Reason Gala, visit www.clearthoughtsfoundation.org/.
By Paula Green