by Marriona Boland ’12
On September 24, 2022, there was an Alzheimer’s Walk hosted at Jenkinson’s Boardwalk. Sergeant Tierney was an alumnus and teacher of Brick Memorial High School for 33 years. Sadly, in 2017, Tierney passed away due to Alzheimer’s. Sergeant Tierney has left a mark in people’s lives and his passing has opened a lot of people’s eyes. At his funeral, Ms. Tarnowski told Mrs. Tierney, “I will work a walkathon for his honor.” Keeping that promise, she did exactly that and ended up making it a tradition.
The Alzheimer’s walk has been held for six years. Throughout the years the goal has always been to raise $1942, in the memory of Tierney’s birth year. With donations still coming in until October 22, we have raised a little bit over $1000 for this year’s walk. You can visit https://www.alznj.org/ and still make donations. About 77 people from Brick Memorial High School attended as well as other schools and locals. Members of BMHS Pals club, Key club, NHS, SGA, ROCT, Italian Honor Society, Spanish Honor Society, and the cheerleading team participated. “This event is always a learning process for the students,” said Tarnowski. “Kids can always go home learning something new or with a different mindset.”
The walk started at 10 am and involved walking 2.5 miles along the boardwalk. The event started by presenting the top teams that fundraised to come onto the stage. Breakfast and drinks were available, both free of charge. Once the walk began, bagpipers led the crowd to start the walk. Saturday was a beautiful day, seeing the community come together as a whole. “It was a successful day,” stated Mrs. Tarnowski.
