Watching his grandmother sliding away was devastating for Jay Asparro and his family.
Jay ran to pray, to think, to clear his mind, and to find his own unique way of helping.
Then he made the commitment to help families who have a loved one suffering from Alzheimer’s.
November 2016 Jay ran 30 miles a day for 3 days, totaling 90 miles to raise awareness for Alzheimer’s. Every mile he contributed to another family and he raised $38,000 for the Long Island Alzheimers Foundation.
It was just the beginning. In November 2017 he ran 75 miles over 2 days to commemorate what would’ve been his grandparents’ 75th wedding anniversary. Halfway 2018 Jay had already raised another $50,000 for the Long Island Alzheimers Foundation.
He joined Lake Placid IronMan 140.6 on July 22, 2018 for all those caregivers who can’t quit and keep pushing forward. He got sick halfway through the swim. But he didn’t give up. On September 9 he picked up where he had to stop 6 weeks before and that day he finished his own Lake Placid IronMan 70.3.
Since Jay began his fundraising journey with the Long Island Alzheimer’s & Dementia Center (LIAD) four years earlier, he had raised over $70,000. In 2019 Jay reached a goal of $100,000!
On Saturday, November 2nd, 2019, Jay embarked on his 100 Mile For Hope run in 1 day, and once again persevered to raise awareness about Alzheimer’s and LIAD’s programs.
Jay was running for his beloved grandmother who passed away in 2019, as well as all of the other families impacted by Alzheimer’s.
The 2019 Ann Asparro Virtual Run
In 2019 Jay ran 100 miles for his grandmother on a local track. Runners could participate from all over the world for $20.
They just logged their miles in on the honor system and ran 100 miles as an individual or as a team up to of 5 runners to help Jay reach his goal of $100,000!
Jay is truly running the marathon of life for a better tomorrow. With each mile, Jay overcomes his own fears and preconceived limitations to push for more awareness of Alzheimer’s disease.
