Former President Bush to visit Indianapolis

Former president George H. W. Bush will speak at a charity event for Alzheimer’s disease research Thursday in Indianapolis.

Tim Sadler, co-owner of Ambassador Health Care, the organization sponsoring the event, said he is looking forward to welcoming the former president to his home, the former home of author Booth Tarkington, at 4270 N. Meridian St.

The event is open to the public and tickets can be purchased for $250 by calling 317-577-2827.

“We’re very honored to have President Bush come to Indiana,” Sadler said. “He doesn’t make many personal appearances anymore, so we’re really glad he chose this one.”

Bush served as president from 1989 to 1993.

Sadler said Bush will give a private briefing to Ambassador Health Care’s corporate sponsors and then deliver a 45-minute speech to about 180 guests. He said Bush will speak about his experience serving as vice president under Ronald Reagan, who died of Alzheimer’s disease in 2004 at age 93.

In a speech delivered at Reagan’s funeral, Bush talked about his experience with the former president.

“As his vice president for eight years, I learned more from Ronald Reagan than from anyone I encountered in all my years of public life,” Bush said. “I learned kindness – we all did. I also learned courage – the nation did.”

Other speakers include Dr. Jeffrey L. Cummings, director and founder of the UCLA Alzheimer’s Disease Center and the Deane F. Johnson Center for Neurotherapeutics; Harry Johns, president and CEO of the Alzheimer’s Association; and Dr. Bernardino Ghetti, director of the Indiana Alzheimer’s Disease Center at the IU School of Medicine, according to a press release.

The proceeds from the event will benefit the Indiana Alzheimer Disease Center at the IU School of Medicine in Indianapolis and the Indiana Chapter of the Alzheimer’s Association. Both work to eliminate Alzheimer’s disease through the advancement of research.

As an IU graduate, Sadler said it was important to him to share the proceeds with an IU medical center.

Sarah Ferguson, director of development for the Alzheimer’s Association’s Greater Indiana chapter, said proceeds from the event will be used to fund research projects and local programs and services the organization provides.

At the national level, the Alzheimer’s Association funds more than $26 million worth of research projects throughout the country and internationally, Ferguson said.

The event will also benefit the Deane F. Johnson Center for Neurotherapeutics at UCLA, a clinical trial center devoted to advancing the treatment of neurological diseases, including Alzheimer’s.

Alzheimer’s disease is the most common cause of dementia, affecting one of every eight people over the age of 65, according to a report from the Alzheimer’s Association. It was the sixth-leading cause of death across all ages in the U.S. in 2006.

The report projects that by 2010, about 120,000 people in Indiana will have the disease.

“We are very appreciative of the support we are receiving from this event,” Ferguson said, “and we hope to further the awareness on Alzheimer’s.”