If I had to pick a favorite color, without hesitation I’d pick brown. Yeah, understandably boring right? But, earth tones beckon me. When shopping for paint, I arrive home with a stack of swatches with names like mink, bittersweet chocolate, and Turkish coffee. My closet is stuffed with taupe turtlenecks and suede skirts. Lately though, I’ve been incorporating a new color into my wardrobe…purple.

When my mom entered her mid-fifties she suddenly began exhibiting strange behavior. Working as a successful therapist and planning for retirement, her eye for detail and uncanny knack to remember names and faces began to shift. She started forgetting coworkers’ names, missing appointments, and struggling with basic daily tasks like responding to emails. After a battery of tests over many months, doctors determined she had Young Onset Alzheimer’s.

Prior to my mother’s diagnosis, my assumption about Alzheimer’s was that it was a disease reserved for the aging population. I quickly learned that it can strike people in their thirties, forties, and fifties.

Recent prevalence reports estimate over 45,000 residents in Southwest Washington and the Portland Metro area are living with Alzheimer’s disease. Seventy-five percent of those are cared for by a family member, which translates into 65,000 people caring for someone with Alzheimer’s. Nationwide as many as 5.3 million Americans are living with Alzheimer’s. While the number of deaths attributed to other major causes has been decreasing nationally, those due to Alzheimer’s have continued to rise. As baby boomers age, Alzheimer’s cases are expected to skyrocket — more than tripling by mid-century.

Alzheimer’s is a cause that historically hasn’t garnered as much attention as some of the other major diseases. Judy McKellar, Executive Director of the Alzheimer’s Association Oregon Chapter, believes fear holds people back from discussing the disease and seeking help. “Many people assume that Alzheimer’s is a normal part of aging — which it isn’t,” said McKellar. “People are terrified of getting it. Often families won’t even call it Alzheimer’s. They’ll dance around the word referring to it as dementia or a cognitive impairment. We really encourage people to talk about the disease and connect through our educational classes and support groups. It’s a tremendous relief for families to realize they aren’t alone.”

On Monday, September 21, the Association is calling for communities throughout the world to “Go Purple” in honor of World Alzheimer’s Day. Through their Casual for a Cause initiative, the Alzheimer’s Association is encouraging people to dress in purple for the day. Think of it as a play on casual Fridays. For a small donation (typically about $5) to the Association, workers can ditch professional office attire and don jeans and a purple tee-shirt for the day. The Association will provide stickers at no cost for any business interested in participating so that workers can display their commitment to the cause.

“It’s a great way to engage people in our efforts,” reports McKellar. “It’s also fun to see how creative some workplaces have been in the past.” Some of the more inventive takes on this theme have included an office that served its workers a purple lunch and decked out every cubical with purple paraphernalia.

Palate pleasing purple options will abound on the 21st. Mon Ami, Uptown Village’s coffee hot spot, is crafting a signature purple crepe for the day. They’ll be swirling Neufchâtel cheese with sweet purple berries and serving the crepe with fresh berries on top. Start the day with this pleasing treat and wrap it up at Cupcake Jones in Portland. Alas, a bridge crossing is required, but it’s well worth the trip. Cupcake Jones is whipping up a purple cupcake for the day. Named Virgil’s Purple, after owner Lisa’s stepfather who died of Alzheimer’s, The Virgil will be a white chocolate marionberry cupcake hand frosted with marionberry buttercream icing. Yum!

Watching my mother slip away into Alzheimer’s disease was a long and painful journey. On September 21 I’ll gladly set aside my brown and proudly wear purple in her honor. For more information about the Alzheimer’s Association visit www.alz.org/oregon or call 503-416-0201.

Kate Dyer-Seeley is a mom, a writer, a coffee junkie and avid reader. Her column appears every other issue in The Voice.