Katie and Duane Church, and their friend Jeff Ray, have a long history of support for missions dedicated to Alzheimer’s. This passion led to their creation of the David Moore Foundation. Formed in 2019, the Foundation is a non-profit public charity with the mission of raising awareness and funds to support research and care of Alzheimer’s disease. Based on their prior years of engagement, upon the Foundation’s creation they selected the Alzheimer’s Association as its primary beneficiary. While the founding member’s efforts in forming the organization are highly noble; sadly, their motivation is far more personal.
In a 2020 Alzheimer’s Association blog post, Katie remembers her Dad, David Moore as her hero. “People used to ask me what I wanted to do when I grew up,” Katie says. “I would say I just want to be like my dad.” Through his work as a pediatrician, he dedicated his life to helping others in the community. When he was in his mid-fifties; however, Katie and her family noticed a change in her father. Once great with numbers, he became unable to calculate the tip on their dinner bills. He became confused and irritable at work, and eventually asked to take a leave of absence. Shortly thereafter David received a shattering notice of younger-onset Alzheimer’s disease in 2008. The family turned to the Alzheimer’s Association’s online services to teach them about the disease and how to navigate his diagnosis until his passing in 2013. Determined to honor her father, Katie and Duane began their fundraising effort by forming Team Unknown in conjunction with Walk to End Alzheimer’s – Charlotte and hosting an event at Unknown Brewery in 2015. It started small with mostly friends and family, but each year has continued to grow into a premier fundraising event in Charlotte, primarily sponsored by local businesses and individuals. This year’s event, called Brews to Remember, is a mixture of silent auction, live music, and awesome drinks and food, and will be held at HopFly Brewing Company on Friday, April 29.
Similar to Katie, Jeff has experienced first-hand the devastating effects that Alzheimer’s disease has had on his mom Sandra Ray who was diagnosed in 2017. In a recent Alzheimer’s Association blog post, Jeff remembers his mom by sharing, “Sandra has been a quintessential example of a faithful life of giving, loving and selfless character. She has lived those values everyday of her life. As a result, she has instilled those values into the two generations that follow her.”
While playing a round of golf, the three came up with an idea: to host a golf tournament with the goal of raising more funds and reaching more people to support the fight against Alzheimer’s disease. This became the catalyst for creating the David Moore Foundation. Currently the Foundation hosts two annual fundraising events in support of its mission: the Sandra Ray Invitational golf tournament, named in honor of Jeff’s mom, and the original brewery event.
Even though the David Moore Foundation was formed just prior to the onset of the pandemic, its founders and the organization have nonetheless supported our Association and the community in varying ways over the years. Across the southeast region, the Foundation has raised and donated critical funds to Alzheimer’s Association campaigns and other local non-profits serving the Alzheimer’s community. And in just its first two years of existence, the David Moore Foundation has contributed net proceeds of $320,000 to support Alzheimer’s research and care.
Based on their outstanding support of the Alzheimer’s Association in North Carolina, the Foundation has been selected as the 2022 Award of Excellence Honoree that will be presented during the upcoming Charlotte Memory Gala on Saturday May 21. Many influential community and business leaders are expected to participate in this gala event under the stars that celebrates the lives of loved ones with dementia as well as raises funds to underwrite the Association’s support, education, advocacy and research initiatives.
“It is our chapter’s greatest honor to present our Award of Excellence each year, and this year’s selection was an obvious one to make,” says Katherine L. Lambert, CEO of the Alzheimer’s Association, Western Carolina Chapter. “The David Moore Foundation has used their voice and visibility to increase Alzheimer’s awareness and advance us further down the track towards our mission.”
About the Charlotte Memory Gala
Guests will join us for an elegant evening under the stars on the front lawn and terrace of the Mint Museum Randolph that features a reception, dinner, powerful mission moments, an auction, live entertainment and dancing.
For more information, tickets, or for sponsorship opportunities, visit charlottememorygala.org.
Alzheimer's Association North Carolina Blog 