Honoring Champions|Honoring Commitments
One of the reasons why we took on a 4,000 mile cross-country tour during the middle of a pandemic, was to meet up with some of our contributors so that they could see their Champion’s name on the car in person.
At the Nantz National Alzheimer Center we spent some time with Bruce Mowry, owner of the Houston-based company Pulse Staffing, who made a contribution to the Racing to End Alzheimer’s Foundation in honor of his father, Paul Mowry.
The heartache of Alzheimer’s
“I loved my father,” says Bruce Mowry, whose father passed away from Alzheimer’s at the age of 88 in 2002 after battling the disease for 10 years. “It was so bad to watch as the Alzheimer’s started to take a hold of him, watching him lose track of what he was supposed to do and having issues and wanting to wander off. It just was sad to watch that change in him.”
Bruce Mowry (l) finding his father’s name on the BMW M4, with Phil Frengs (r)
Mowry’s father served in World War II and fought in the invasion of Normandy on D-Day. He continued serving as he retired and got older, mowing his neighbors’ lawns and helping people wherever and whenever he could.
He was, as Mowry recalled, “always there doing what good people do and setting an example,” but as the disease progressed, his father started to slip away.
“It’s hard watching someone that you care so much about go downhill over such a long period of time,” Mowry said. “Alzheimer’s is somewhat forgiving, because the victim doesn’t really know what’s happening at some point. They just kind of live day-to-day or minute-to-minute and don’t really have that sense of what’s happening to them anymore, but it’s so hard on the family and caregiver.”
Racing to find a cure
Mowry, an amateur BMW racer, heard about Racing to End Alzheimer’s through the racing community. Motivated by his desire to help the effort find a cure for the disease and further the care for patients, Mowry wanted give back in loving memory of his father.
“There’s something exciting about knowing that my dad’s name is running around a race track,” he said. “So many people know someone who was affected by it, so they can identify with it. That’s made it just a lot of fun for people. It’s all about maintaining that connection and not forgetting them. It means a lot to me that they’re still with us in some way.”
If you want to Honor your Champion and join the race to defeat Alzheimer’s, a $250 donation will put your loved one’s name on the BMW M4 for the entire 9 race season which begins July 17th at Sebring.
Together, we can make a difference.
