I recently traveled to New Jersey and was a guest at the home of Eileen “Strong Feather’ Colon. It was a great joy to meet Strong Feather again and to meet her family and some of her friends who support her in her endeavors with the Regulars. It was a great privilege of mine to meet the founder of the Regulars, Enzo Simone, at Strong Feather’s home. Enzo is an amazing person whom I admire for his passion and commitment to ending Parkinson’s disease (PD) and Alzheimer’s disease (ALZ). His mother has ALZ and his father-in-law has PD.

(This is written as a parallel to a blog article “Friendships” posted on Jan 3, 2009 on 10mountains10years.blogspot.com by Strong Feather of the Regulars. “Friendships” was written a year ago but it all will always ring true.)

Friendships

It was a year ago exactly, that I was surfing the net and came across a group of regular people that caught my attention. I didn’t know anything about them, but I was intrigued when I discovered what they were up to.

They call themselves the Regulars. For those of you not familiar with this group, they are a team of ordinary people, on a quest toward a great purpose. They are determined to bring awareness to Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s disease in order to find a cure.

The group, founded and led by Enzo Simone, began its quest in 2006. A Trail Called Hope was born out of Enzo’s desire to see Parkinson’s and Alzheimer’s disease conquered by bringing worldwide attention to help in finding a cure. His method? Conquering one mountain at a time for the next ten years and forming an ever-changing entourage of members who climb with him each year.

Several have been invited to climb, but not all are able. If physical limitations don’t present a barrier, then the work it takes to just get to the trailhead itself may hinder a wanna-be Regular. In Enzo’s words, “Becoming one of the Regulars is not a flight of fancy and will require you to work hard in more ways than you can imagine. You will promise yourself and others a number of things by becoming one of the Regulars.”

What exactly are those promises? Enzo calls them the Regulars’ 11 Commandments, making it clear what is expected from each team member. Some of them are:

~You must be willing to fund raise.

~You will be willing to make many sacrifices.

~You must be willing to raise awareness.

~You must be willing to pay your own way for all expenses.

~You must be willing to share your experiences with others.

~You must be willing to promote the need for not one, but BOTH Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s to benefit the Alzheimer’s Association AND Michael J. Fox Foundation – Team Fox.

~Although the following is not a requirement, it is usually best if Alzheimer’s has impacted your family (or Parkinson’s) so that you have seen the devastation first hand and can tell others through your own experiences with these diseases.

Raising awareness and funds for Parkinson’s and Alzheimer’s disease is not just an agenda for Enzo. It is also a personal quest. He sees the devastation it has caused in members of his family. He knows of and has lived within its consequences with loved ones – first hand. However, because of the trail he has chosen to walk, he has seen and/or met hundreds, if not thousands of others who have been affected by these diseases. He knows their struggles, their dreams, and often many times, their hopelessness. However, Enzo’s motto: In the quest to conquer Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s disease, we were born to end this! In living his motto, he in turn has revived hope in the people who are afflicted with these diseases.

In his latest climb, he and his team conquered Mt. Kilimanjaro in July of this past year. The climb was filmed and sections of can it be seen in the upcoming documentary, 10 Mountains 10 Years, which is being produced by Back Light Productions. The movie’s introduction is done by Leeza Gibbons, narrated by Anne Hathaway and Bruce Springsteen has contributed his time and talent to the project as well. The film festival locations and dates, however, have not yet been released. This is currently the Regulars’ largest awareness project/fundraiser they’ve currently got in the works.

Their next climb? What originally was to be Aconcagua in Mexico, the Regulars have taken a side trail and substituted “The Army of Change” Mount Washington project in New Hampshire to their list of mountains to conquer.  This ‘little jaunt’ was added for the benefit of those who are fighting for a cure for Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s disease and are unable (for whatever reason) to conquer an Everest or a Mt. Hood but want to participate in some sort of climb. Because of the magnitude of interest the Regulars are stirring, they hope to get at least a thousand advocates climbing Mt. Washington together this summer. (If you would like to be a part of the Mt. Washington climb taking place on July 31, contact Enzo Simone at the Regular’s website 10mountains10years.)

As I said, it has been almost a year since I first heard about the Regulars. Within that year, they have raised thousands of dollars to find a cure for Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s disease. Within a year, they have climbed a minimum of 19, 341 feet – the height of Mt. Kilimanjaro. Within a year, they have brought considerable attention to their cause – a quest to end these two diseases. Within a year, they have given hope back to those afflicted by two debilitating diseases and enabled them to dream once again because of the attention this team of regular people are bring to these diseases.

If you’d like more information, you can visit their website above or find them on their Facebook page, 10 Mountains, 10 Years. Perhaps within a year, we’ll have witnessed history and seen a cure finally found for Parkinson’s and/or Alzheimer’s disease. Now, wouldn’t that be a mountain top experience!

There is a song called, ‘Ordinary People’. These are the words:

Just ordinary people,
God uses ordinary people.
He chooses people just like me and you,
who are willing to do as He commands.
God uses people that will give Him all,
no matter how small your all may seem to you;
because little becomes much
as you place it in the Master’s hand.

We’d like you to meet some ordinary, ‘regular’ people… The Regulars.

Leave no stone unturned in the search for cures.
The conquest of Alzheimer’s Disease & Parkinson’s Disease will be won by Regular People like you.

As we say in the Regulars. . .

In this battle to defeat Alzheimer’s & Parkinson’s,
“the Regulars” did not come to take prisoners.

We came to set them free.

A special group of people committing to an epic plan to climb 10 mountains in 10 years to help find cures for Alzheimers and Parkinson’s are known as the Regulars. You can read about them by clicking on the links and if you are an avid Facebook junkie, they can also be found on MySpace under “Groups” and Facebook under “Causes” (or, click on the links).

This year is the fourth year in their projected climbs and in July, they are slated for Africa, destination Mt. Kilimangaro. In preparation, one member of their team, Strong Feather Eileen, says, “Now my journey begins as I continue to clear all obstacles from my path and continue to search inside beyond the physical. Mt. Hood taught me many lessons. Mt. Washington has given me confidence. Mt. Kilimanjaro will define me.”

The team, led by Enzo Simone, began in 2006 with their epic climb up the highest peak in Continental Europe, Mount Blanc. Their travel around the globe, beginning with Mt. Blanc and ending with Mt. Everest in 2015, is called A Trail Called Hope, a campaign started to raise awareness and funds needed to help find cures for those with Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s Disease.

We strongly desire to let this awesome team of ‘regular’ people know that we support them and encourage them in not only what they’re doing now, but thank them for what they’ve done.

One of the team members, Chadd Tabor, knows first hand what it’s like to live with PD. “I was diagnosed with early onset Parkinson’s 3 years ago. I spent most of my time trying to hide it. Now, I am spending my time trying to fight it. When I first started reaching out to fellow PD’ers, several people told me about the Regulars. I read the Bios and watched the videos. It inspired me more than words can explain. Enzo offered me a spot and it blew my mind! Could I climb a mountain? Do I own a decent pair of thick socks? (he he he) Ain’t it cold there? Lions, tigers, and bears. Oh my! How could a guy in my situation, with PD, pass up an opportunity like this? A chance of a lifetime for the fight of a lifetime. Alot of things can happen to and for me between now and the climb. So regardless of my shaky legs on a mountain or on the sidelines I am thankful for the opportunity to play a part in this amazing adventure. Rock on Regulars!”

You can read more about each member of the team at their website. You can also read about their upcoming climb, A Trail Called Hope – IV and Team Kilimanjaro at their website, The Regulars.

The Regulars are looking forward to a big year in 2009. Enzo Simone says, “Time flies and our project is now in it’s fourth year. We have a dynamic team, and we have raised the bar on what we hope to accomplish. This year Back Light Productions hopes to complete the first of three feature film documentaries to follow our project around the world during our decade long epic.”

Black Light Productions, ‘a Los Angeles based motion picture company that produces stories that enrich, inspire, and dignify the goodness of the human experience’, is chronicling the worldwide epic. 10 Mountains 10 Years, is a documentary feature film following the international team of mountain climbers. As well as tracking ‘the greatest advances and climbs happening in the medical community’, they are also following individuals battling these two diseases with their caregivers in the long term.

“This is a story of hope and of common everyday people coming together to change this world and leave something better behind. A collaboration with the Alzheimer’s Association and the Michael J. Fox Foundation, 100% of all profits from the film go towards medical research and caregiver programs. ” (Black Light Productions)

To help support the 10 Mountains 10 Years feature film documentary, Black Light is offering the awesome opportunity to purchase a “Special Thanks” credit. For $20, your name (or the name of a friend or loved one per your designation) will appear in the end credits of the movie, making you a lasting part of this enormous endeavor. Credit purchases go towards production expenses to make this philanthropic project a reality. You can read more at Black Light’s 10 Mountains in Ten Years site.

Although science and research move forward and chip away at both Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s Disease, there is still no cure. In this quest, ‘no stone can be left unturned. All must be explored’ (Enzo Simone). The next stone to turn and the next area of exploration: Mount Kilimanjaro – highest mountain in Africa.

They will be traveling June 28th and will start climbing on July 3rd for five days. The team will consist of its Team Lead Enzo Simone, and will include Brett Curtis, Jennifer Yee, Eileen Bencivengo/Colon, Eric Buzzetto, Nadyne Perlin, Margaret Fuller, Lori Saviers, Adam Mitchell, Jaymes Brevard, Bill Glover, Chadd Tabor, Luc Thoelen, and Denise Albero.

On behalf of the entire Alzheimer’s and PD community, we want to thank all of the Regulars, both past and present for what you have done and continue to do. We leave you with a quote by Enzo Simone.

Inspiration is the beginning of all my efforts (our efforts). When we feel we can do no more, inspiration is the whisper in our ear telling us to stand up and try again. It can be done.

Be inspired. Listen to the whisper. Stand and don’t ever give up. Believe in the cause and then… become part of it.

Purchase The Regulars products at: www.cafepress.com/theregulars

Co-authored by Judy Hensley and Sherri Woodbridge