AAQI News

(Burton, Michigan) -- February 12, 2013: Last month the Alzheimer's Art Quilt Initiative (AAQI) awarded three research grants, the most awarded in a single month since the AAQI became a nonprofit in 2008.

• $40,894 was awarded to Texas A & M Health Science Center to explore the connection between type 2 diabetes and Alzheimer's disease. The research will be conducted by Ian V.J. Murray, Ph.D., Assistant Professor, Department of Neuroscience and Experimental Therapeutics; and Carmen Ramirez, M.D., M.Sc., Assistant Professor, Texas A & M Health Science Center.
  
• $35,000 was awarded to The University of Texas Medical Branch at Galveston to understand why some individuals remain cognitively intact despite the presence of abundant plaques and tangles (the hallmark signs of Alzheimer's) in their brains. The research will be conducted by Nicole L. Bjorklund, Ph.D., National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences Postdoctoral Trainee.
  
• $38,354 was awarded to Johns Hopkins University, Bloomberg School of Public Health, to identify and target molecular mechanisms of cell death in the Alzheimer’s brain. The research will be conducted by Lucian Soane, M.D., Research Associate.

The AAQI has funded 14 research studies to date. These grants are made possible, in large part, by the money raised from the sale of donated quilts.

For more in depth explanation of the funded research see www.alzquilts.org/researchawards.html.
Purchase quilts online at www.alzquilts.org/quiltsforsale.html

The Alzheimer’s Art Quilt Initiative is a national charity whose mission is to raise awareness and fund research. The AAQI has raised more than $894,000 for Alzheimer’s research since January 2006. Ami Simms of Flint, Michigan is the founder and executive director of the AAQI, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization. Her mother had Alzheimer’s. This is the last year the AAQI will be fundraising.

For more information about the AAQI or to make a donation, contact Ami Simms at 810-637-5586 (9 a.m. – 3 p.m. Eastern), ami@alzquilts.org or www.alzquilts.org.

And more---

In January the AAQI awarded THREE research awards----that's the most in a single month EVER! (See the press release below for more details and snag anything you want for your blog.)

In other news, quilt sales in January were phenomenal---183 quilts! That almost double what we sold last year in January! Those little quilts brought in big bucks: $9,430 for the AAQI.

February's quilt auction was fantastic, bringing in $2,906 for the AAQI. Only two regular auctions surpassed that amount. (October 2011 and December 2011)

Quilts from "Alzheimer's Illustrated: From Heartbreak to Hope" will begin to be auctioned on March 1st. Take a look at them on our new blog. http://www.thenamequilts.wordpress.com Use the search box in the upper right corner to find which quilt has the name of your loved one(s). Not all the quilts are up yet, but the one search box will check every quilt listed.

Early next month I'll be releasing names of quilters who will be participating in the Celebrity Invitational Quilt Auction in November.

Our last year is going to be the best ever!

Thanks,

Ami Simms

What wonderful news, this is so good to hear.  Help to make the last year the best ever, bid on a quilt.  Happy Quilting!