[Congressional Record Volume 160, Number 152 (Friday, December 12, 2014)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E1795]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                       TRIBUTE TO ELEANOR OWNBEY

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                          HON. ADAM B. SCHIFF

                             of california

                    in the house of representatives

                      Thursday, December 11, 2014

  Mr. SCHIFF. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to pay tribute to Eleanor 
Ownbey and to honor the work of her two daughters, Maggie and Sue 
Ownbey, for their many years of advocacy on behalf of their mother and 
the Alzheimer's disease community.
   Eleanor battled Alzheimer's disease for more than ten years, passing 
away from this tragic disease on February 18, 2014. Maggie and Sue 
watched as their mother not only forgot that they were her daughters, 
but also how to talk, to walk, and to feed herself. Eleanor spent the 
last three years of her life in hospice care and most of that time 
confined to a bed. Her daughters describe her as a brave woman with a 
strong spirit and an infectious sense of humor.
   Inspired by their mother's courage, Maggie and Sue have spent the 
last eight years telling their mother's story and how much this 
ravenous disease costs families, what caregivers need, and how 
desperately a cure needs to be found.
   In fact, someone develops Alzheimer's disease every 67 seconds and 
more than five million Americans suffer from Alzheimer's disease. It is 
also the only cause of death in the top 10 in America without a way to 
prevent it, treat it, or slow its progression. This devastating disease 
is also taking a toll on our economy and health care infrastructure. 
Caring for people with Alzheimer's and other dementias cost the United 
States an estimated $214 billion in 2014, and unless something changes, 
costs are estimated to rise to a total of $1.2 trillion in 2050.
   I call on my colleagues to recognize the growing Alzheimer's crisis 
and to support a strong increase in funding for Alzheimer's disease 
research for Fiscal Year 2015 that will enable the National Institutes 
of Health to arrive one step closer to finding a cure for this tragic 
disease.
   Eleanor Ownbey is survived by her children Maggie, Sue, Steven, and 
Mark and her grandchildren Jason, Summit, Netanya, Allie, and William 
``Finn.'' I wish the Ownbey family all the best in their future 
endeavors and express my deepest gratitude for their advocacy on behalf 
of the millions of families whose loved ones suffer from Alzheimer's 
disease.

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