This Xmas The Good Penguin is raising money for Alzheimer’s Society, a charity that aims to end the devastation cause by dementia by giving vital support to those who need it, funding research and by campaigning for change. Dementia, which can be caused by many diseases including Alzheimer’s, describes a set of symptoms that can affect memory, problem-solving, language and behaviour. It’s sadly a progressive and terminal condition.
The statistics are staggering – nearly a million people are estimated to be living with dementia in the UK and that is expected to rise to 1.4 million by 2040. Whilst dementia isn’t a normal part of ageing, age is a risk factor and as such around 1 in 14 people over the age of 65 have dementia. The leading cause of death across the UK is now dementia, representing 11.3% of all deaths.
Whilst there is no cure, research has shown that “the risk factors for heart disease and stroke – such as raised blood pressure, diabetes, obesity and smoking – are also risk factors for dementia. By modifying or changing these risk factors in mid-life, the risk of dementia could be reduced by up to 30%.”.
Lauren Bromham, Alzheimer’s Society Regional Fundraiser, said: “We are so grateful that Good Penguin have chosen to support Alzheimer’s Society. Each hour people generously give to fundraise for us, every event they take part in, every pound they donate, they’re making a life-changing difference to people living with dementia.
“Alzheimer’s Society provides vital support to people living with dementia, funds groundbreaking research and campaigns to make dementia the priority it should be. Together, we will end the devastation caused by dementia.
“There are almost a million people living with dementia in the UK. But we simply can’t reach everyone without the continued support of our incredible fundraisers like Good Penguin.”
This year The Good Penguin has made a contribution to Alzheimer’s Society through our JustGiving page and we’re encouraging others, like yourself, to support us by making a contribution this Xmas. Here is a link to our JustGiving page:
https://justgiving.com/page/the-good-penguin-christmas-2024
To accelerate our fund raising efforts, we commissioned Frank Tizzoni, who you may know as the French illustrator that draws caricatures of speakers at the Kernel Recipes conference, to design a t-shirt for us for sell. We wanted to express both the confusion experienced by those suffering with Dementia as well as its social impact. We came up with a design featuring Tux, the Linux mascot as shown below:
You can now buy our t-shirts online from our Etsy ‘TGPMerch’ store with all profits going to Alzheimer’s Society. We think it would make a fantastic Xmas present for anyone who loves Tux, Linux and computers in general.
