Flora man plans waterways paddling event to talk about Alzheimer's

Keith Plunkett, Mississippi paddler and organizer of Lucy’s Revenge — an Alzheimer’s awareness project — will be joined by an expected 30 paddlers in Ocean Springs this weekend for the kickoff weekend of the year-long event.

Paddlers will meet Saturday at Marker No. 1 of the Old Fort Bayou Blue Trail. The effort will continue on Mississippi Gulf Coast regions through July and August.

Plunkett will travel across five regions in Mississippi to paddle waterways during the next year.

During the trips, the Flora resident will tell stories of Alzheimer’s patients and caregivers in each region and will highlight efforts by the Alzheimer’s Association and medical professionals to defeat the disease.

He will also speak with groups across the state to raise awareness and money to aid families affected by the disease with support services.

Plunkett has set a goal of 600 miles, or roughly 120 miles per region and hopes to entice a few others to join him on some of the excursions throughout the year.

The project is named in memory of Plunkett’s grandmother, Lucy Plunkett, who suffered from Alzheimer’s before succumbing to the disease in 1993.

For more information visit http://www.lucysrevenge.com/.

Clarion Ledger