Gibbons will talk about her efforts in the keynote speech at the meeting's awards luncheon, held from 12:00 to 1:30 p.m. in the Miami Beach Convention Center on Wednesday, April 13.
"I am extremely honored to receive this prestigious award which will allow me to broaden the message of the Leeza Gibbons Memory Foundation. So many families and their caregivers know the frustration and confusion of neurological disorders," Gibbons said. "The work of the American Academy of Neurology is essential. I lost my grandmother to Alzheimer's disease, and I lose a little more of my mom to this thief of memories everyday. Because of that, I am deeply invested in the American Academy of Neurology's powerful work."
Her advocacy has aimed to take the shame and stigma out of memory disorders. She began by working with various Alzheimer's-related nonprofits and visiting Capitol Hill. In addition to producing episodes about Alzheimer's and dementia on her daily talk show, Gibbons become a frequent and respected speaker about the topic on radio and television.
In 2002 Gibbons formed the nonprofit Memory Foundation. The foundation's signature program is Leeza's Place, a series of community-based locations that offer comfort, education, and care freely to people newly diagnosed with memory disorders and their caregivers.
Leeza's Place centers are designed to develop continuums of care within communities. Three centers are open now, and many others are in various stages of devel
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Contact: Marilee Reu
mreu@aan.com
651-695-2789
American Academy of Neurology
13-Apr-2005