Created: 6/7/2004 6:46:35 PM 
By Charlene Shirk and Stephanie Paulk First Coast News
JACKSONVILLE, FL-- When he told the world he had Alzheimer's disease, former President Ronald Reagan said he was "embarking on the journey that would lead him into the sunset of his life."
He'll be buried at sunset in California this Friday, after a national funeral in Washington D.C. A family spokesperson said President Bush will deliver the eulogy.
Ironically back in 1983, the late President Reagan signed a proclamation naming November as National Alzheimer's Awareness Month. Eleven years later, in what many call a courageous move, he announced he had the disease. The Alzheimer's association says that announcement had a profound impact on putting Alzheimer's in the national spotlight.
Sources say while it is an extremely sad time for former first lady Nancy Reagan, there is a sense of relief her late husband isn't suffering anymore.
Like Ronald Reagan, one in ten people will be diagnosed with Alzheimer's in their lifetime. About 4.5 million Americans currently live with the disease, 15,000 to 16,000 of those are on the First Coast.
Alzheimer's patient Dee Dee Taylor, loves to stroll the Southbank. She used to walk with her husband after their Saturday night dates. Even though her husband passed away and she was diagnosed with Alzheimer's, she didn't want to give up her walks. She now walks with a caregiver, trying to hold on to the happy memories of walking with her husband.
Taylor knows her memories will one day fade, but adds "I'm enjoying them while I can, and when I lose them I won't know it."
Taylor's stroll today brought her by flags flying at half staff, a fitting tribute to a president who made it easier to say the word "Alzheimer's" out loud.
Just a month ago, Nancy Reagan described what would soon be the end of President Reagan's ten-year battle with the disease as a "long journey that had finally taken him to distant place where I can no longer reach him."
Alzheimer's Association's Regional Director, Diantha Grant says "those ten years had such a profound effect on raising awareness of the disease it really was immeasurable."
When Reagan wrote a letter to the nation he had Alzheimer's it helped put the disease in the national spotlight. Others would eventually share their diagnosis including actor Charlton Heston, and Sgt Shriver, Maria Shriver's father.
It also gives people like Dee Dee the comfort that it's okay to tell. She's happy "it makes them know it's not something to be ashamed of." The former first lady's candor about the challenges of care giving also helped families realize they all faced familiar frustrations, giving them hope that someday their grief would turn to relief.
Dee Dee says "they know he's not in pain now, and he probably wasn't in pain before. But I just feel like when you do die you're at peace, and they are probably thankful for that."
After his diagnosis, the late president and former first lady formed the Nancy and Ronald Reagan Research Institute to find a cure for Alzheimer's. Both Nancy and his late daughter, Maureen, were also active members of the Alzheimer's Association.
If you want to make donations in Ronald Reagan's honor, his family asks you do it through the Alzheimer's Association. There's more information in the links section of our website.
You can also sign a memorial book for the Reagan family this week at Oaklawn Cemetery on San Jose Boulevard. Weather permitting, the book will be available from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Wednesday and Thursday.
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