2026 WALK STORIES
At the IG Wealth Management Walk for Alzheimer's, we are all walking to support over 20,300 people living with dementia in Manitoba and their families but for most, they are walking for a family member or friend affected by the disease. Below are just some of the inspiring stories by Manitobans for Manitobans to help inspire others to take part in this wonderful event.
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Walking for mom, walking for community
Walking for mom, Walking for a community
When Chelsea Bernhard shows up for the IG Wealth Management Walk for Alzheimer’s every year, she brings her family’s story with her.
Chelsea began walking in her mother’s memory more than 10 years ago.
My mom was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease at just 48 years old. I was in my early 30s and unsure what to expect,” says Chelsea. “It was a shock to our family when my mom was diagnosed, but the support from the Society helped us figure out how to keep moving forward.
Chelsea’s mother passed away in 2022, just before turning 60. Since then, the Walk has become a meaningful way for Chelsea and her family to honour her mother’s memory and stay connected to a cause that shaped their lives. Her daughter, now 15, has been walking alongside her since she was a child.
“My daughter has grown up doing this,” Chelsea says. “She looks forward to it every year. Decorating the sign, bringing Grandma’s picture and seeing all the other families. It’s helped her understand that there’s so much support out there.”
Today, Chelsea attends the Walk alongside her coworkers from Comforts of Home Care, which adds another layer of meaning to her Walk experience.
At Comforts of Home Care, Chelsea supports people living with dementia and their families every day. Participating in the Walk as a workplace team has become a purposeful way for her coworkers to step outside their daily routines and support the dementia community in a fun way.
“Being together at the Walk, on such a fun day filled with music, laughter and such compassionate people, also helps us bond and connect on another level,” Chelsea says. “Over the years, the Walk has become an annual tradition for our team. It’s something we all really look forward to doing we enjoy making a difference together.”
Chelsea encourages others facing dementia to reach out to the Alzheimer Society of Manitoba as early as possible, so they can start growing a support system. She knows how isolating the disease can feel, and how much easier it becomes when you’re not carrying it alone.
She also encourages others to get their workplaces involved in the Walk. Forming a Walk team with coworkers is a powerful way to build camaraderie while making a real difference.
The Walk continues to remind her every year that there is a whole community of support walking beside her — families, coworkers, care partners, daughters, sons, friends, grandchildren — all showing up for the same reason.
For Chelsea, that shared sense of support is what keeps her coming back.
Taking Care of Our Memories
Fatima Tumang remembers the first time she recognized dementia in her life. As a child, she spent time in the homes of family members living with the disease, watching the way things gradually shifted for them.
At first, these noticeable changes were explained away as signs of aging, but eventually those explanations no longer fit. This experience stayed with her long before she even had a name for it.
In 2014, Fatima organized a group to join the IG Wealth Management Walk for Alzheimer's for the first time. What began as a simple effort to bring people together quickly grew into something more meaningful. She poured her heart into raising awareness, even producing segments about the Walk that aired on Phillippine television, helping families bak home better understand dementia. It was a cuase worth showing up for.
Over the years, the Walk took on a greater, personal meaning to Fatima — a way of honouring the family she’d lost and the memories she still holds of them.
“I’m walking for them, because they’re not here with us anymore,” she says. “I only have their memories with me.”
Last year, her team walked under the name, “Take Care of Our Memories,” which came from that same place. For Fatima, memory isn’t just a background function of daily life. “It’s the thing that holds people together across distance, time and loss,” she says.
“Our memories deserve to be cherished.”
When the Walk returned in person after the pandemic, she brought her family for the first time. Her kids were young and experienced the whole day at face value — the crowd, the colours, the cheering at the finish line — and watching them take it all in gave her a new way of seeing something she’d been part of for nearly ten years.
“They see everything,” she says. “What feels normal to me is extraordinary to them.”
Fatima wants her children to grow up knowing what it feels like to show up for other people. She hopes they understand that the ability to offer support is something you shouldn’t take for granted because there may be times in life when you’re the one who needs someone walking beside you.
This year, Fatima walks with a renewed purpose. "I walk for my children, whose little hearts already understand how precious memories are," Fatima said. "And I walk for everyone who knows that memory loss can touch any age, any family, at any moment.
Fatima and her family are excited to join the 2026 Winnipeg Walk under a new team name, "Little Steps for Memories." Their team motto is: "To honour the stories of those we've loved. To support families facing memory loss today. To protect the memories our children are still making. To help create a future where fewer memories fade too soon."
Fatima encourages anyone who hasn't experienced the Walk before to participate and join over a thousand otehrs in supporting families impacted by dementia. Every donation, every share and every step makes a difference.
Jack's Quarters
Sharon Bonar’s dad met his friends for coffee multiple times a day.
They had a regular spot in Portage la Prairie, but the whole point wasn’t really the coffee — it was to show up and be together. Jack McWhirter was that kind of guy; friendly, but private and he always showed up for the people he cared about.
Jack had been an airplane mechanic in the Air Force, and after retirement, he fixed small engines out of his garage. He was proud of his work and enjoyed breathing new life into things others may have given up on.
One of Jack’s quirks was that he wasn’t a fan of walking long distances, which Sharon finds funny now that his whole family shows up to walk 5K in his name every year.
Sharon and her brothers decided to sign up for the IG Wealth Management Walk for Alzheimer’s after Jack was diagnosed with dementia. They began looking for help shortly after the diagnosis. The Alzheimer Society gave them a better sense of what to expect, and later, when Jack moved into a long-term care home in Winnipeg, Sharon reached out again to find local support. Around that time, she heard about the Walk and thought it might be something meaningful the whole family could do together.
Jack was still alive when they attended their first Walk. “He wasn’t into the whole walking thing,” Sharon laughs, “but seeing everyone show up together mattered more.”
“He was just happy that we were all there,” she says.
They called their team “Jack’s Quarters”, as a nod to Jack’s nickname, “Quarter” (if you say his last name McWhirter fast enough, it sounds a bit like “Quarter”).
Although the original Quarter is no longer here to walk alongside his family, Sharon, her brothers, kids and grandchildren continue to walk together.
Something that stands out to Sharon at each Walk is how many people are there, all walking for someone, all dealing with the same thing in different ways.
“The people there are happy. Everyone is proud to be there to represent who they’re walking for.”
For Sharon, the Walk is a way to hold onto her dad, the man who showed up for coffee every day and made sure his friends did too. So, every year, Jack’s Quarters does the same.
Who are you walking for?
Walkers from across Manitoba are sharing who they are walking for at this year's IG Wealth Management Walk for Alzheimer's:
“I’m walking for my grandfather living with vascular dementia. My girlfriends walk beside me and have even joined and raised funds for my team, Team Economists – it feels great to have their love and support.” – Ally L.
"I love how the Walk brings so many people together. This event helps bring awareness and togetherness in something that so many people might feel alone or lost within. Community is everything.” – Jessica D.
“We are walking for our beautiful Mom, Doreen, who passed away last October. Mom was a bright light in the world who loved to sing, dance and was always there for her family.” - Michele K. & Joy R.
“We walk for my husband who lived with dementia. It’s a great way to bring our family and friends together while supporting a great cause it’s a win/win for all of us.” - Theresa B.
"Many of my friends and family have been personally affected by dementia. We walk to help pay it forward to improve the future outcomes of this disease, but also to pay it back for all the support we’ve received from the Alzheimer Society.” - John B.
