Battle against Alzheimer’s personal for twin volunteers

Their mother was diagnosed with disease at age 55.

Twins Natalie and Lyndsey Neal were 18 years old and embarking on college careers when the bad news hit: At 55, their mother had been diagnosed with Alzheimer’s.

“We were freshmen in college,” said Natalie, 25, who lives with her sister in Virginia-Highland. “Then it progressed really quickly. It’s been a nightmare for our family.”

After years of caring for her, the twins and their father moved their mom into a memory care facility. In her final stages of the disease, she can’t communicate or recognize her children.

“But she knows we’re people she loves,” Natalie said. “It’s just part of this awful journey that’s gone on for eight years.”

Two years ago, Lyndsey was scrolling through Instagram when she saw a post for “Battle for the Brain,” a lip-sync competition that doubles as a major fundraising event for the nonprofit Daughters Against Alzheimer’s.

Co-founders Susan Watson and Michelle Rooks launched the group in 2017.

“The name ‘Daughters Against Alzheimer’s’ got to me,” Lyndsey said. “It’s hard to find a community of women with such a passion for fighting this disease.”

The two offered to help with the show that features corporate teams of amateur performers strutting on the stage of the Coca-Cola Roxy.

“We’ve volunteered backstage ever since,” Lyndsey said. “We get everyone on stage and make sure everyone is happy. It’s an amazing event that has raised millions for research.”

While pitching in to make the event run smoothly, the twins also have built connections.

“We have met so many people that we now have a community we can text and talk to,” Natalie said. “A lot of the volunteers are older, and the people they cared for have already passed. We’ve also found people our age who have grandparents affected by this disease. But this is our mom; our life has been completely changed.”

Those connections make being part of the show team worth the experience, Lyndsey said.

“It is about raising money and knowing that, with research, this won’t happen to our children,” she said.

“But it also gives us a sense of community and the feeling that we’re not alone.”

COURTESY Natalie (right) and Lyndsey Neal were 18 years old and embarking on college careers when they found out their mother, at 55, had been diagnosed with Alzheimer’s. They have since joined the fight.