Jerry Bower's late wife Ruth Ann's diagnosis of Alzheimer's Disease spurred his quest to educate himself and the community about the disease. "I read everything I could, went to a support group in Espanola, decided we needed a support group up here, and formed one," said Jerry, who has also participated in seven Alzheimer's Memory Walks.

Jerry and Ruth Ann were married in Lyons, Kansas, on January 15, 1950. They moved to New Mexico from Lyons on January 17, 1960, and raised their two sons, Bruce and Brent, in Los Alamos.

In 2004, Jerry was named an Andrus Award nominee by the American Association of Retired Persons. He helped demolish the White Rock Senior Center to make room for the Day Out program in White Rock, and appointed himself the "unofficial sidewalk superintendent" for construction of a Day Out wing at the Betty Ehart Senior Center. Jerry has delivered meals through the Meals on Wheels program and has organized a men's and women's pool league at the Senior Center.

Additional biographical material can be found in the Los Alamos Monitor of April 11, 2004.

Written by Karen Nilsson Brandt, copyright ©