Alzheimer’s disease. It affects millions, but rarely do you hear about the experiences of people taking care of a loved one with it.
Longtime racing sponsor Phil Frengs wants to change that, and he elected to use racing as his platform, creating the nonprofit Racing to End Alzheimer’s.
“It’s a loud sport,” Phil says. “So why not get loud about Alzheimer’s and dementia? People don’t want to talk about brain diseases. They usually want to keep it quiet.
It’s Personal
Phil knows what it’s like to live with someone who has Alzheimer’s. His wife, Mimi, received the diagnosis of early-onset Alzheimer’s in 2013.
“If you sit down with a neurologist and they say, ‘It appears that you’re suffering from dementia,’ that’s a tough discussion,” Phil recalls. “Some people can’t accept it. In my wife’s case, she knew something was wrong, but once that doctor said that to her, she never spoke of it again.”
After Phil Frengs’ wife, Mimi, was diagnosed with early-onset Alzheimer’s, he felt compelled to help others with loved ones battling the disease. Photography Credit: Courtesy Racing to End Alzheimer’s.
During this time, Phil, through his company Legistics, sponsored cars in what’s now called the IMSA Michelin Pilot Challenge.
“While she was going through the first part of her journey with the disease, I was mostly home taking care of her,” Phil explains. “I was still going to races when I could.
Photography Credit: Courtesy Racing to End Alzheimer’s
“Then, it dawned on me,” he continues. “Branding on a car is expensive. It obviously has value. Well, what would happen if we put the names of those suffering from Alzheimer’s, or any form of dementia, [on the car]? Could we get people to do that via donation? Wouldn’t that be a great way to increase awareness of the disease and create funding [for organizations fighting it]?”
That provided the impetus for Racing to End Alzheimer’s, which was launched in 2017. It started with one race and then quickly grew to season-long campaigns.
An Incredible Fundraising Drive
Racing to End Alzheimer’s offers a variety of levels, ranging from $100 to $1000, to help fund entities fighting the disease. For $250, you can add a name of a loved one stricken with Alzheimer’s or another form of dementia to the MDK Motorsports entry in the Porsche Deluxe Carrera Cup North America. Legistics, Phil’s company, matches each donation, too.
“The very first year, we had 70 names on the car,” Phil says. “Last year, we had 186 names on the car.” After just two events in 2023, the Racing to End Alzheimer’s Porsche carried 91 names.
Since 2017, Racing to End Alzheimer’s has donated more than $750,000 to entities battling the disease. Every cent raised by the organization goes straight toward its beneficiaries.
Photography Credit: Courtesy Racing to End Alzheimer’s
For 2023, the nonprofit will primarily support two organizations: the Nantz National Alzheimer Center at Houston Methodist, a leading research facility on the disease, and UCLA Alzheimer’s & Dementia Care Program, which provides care for both patients and their families.
“To know that the generosity of all these people and their commitment to their loved ones resulted in this type of financial benefit–it’s really rewarding,” Phil says. “A million dollars for anything is a big number.”
Going Beyond the Million
Perhaps even more rewarding is what the charity stirs in those who encounter it. The effects of Alzheimer’s and dementia reach beyond just the individual with it.
“This particular disease affects the entire family unit,” Phil says. “The person affected by this, they need caregivers. It’s not the type of thing you go off to a hospital for treatment and come back. It’s every day, every moment, somebody has to be with them. If someone gets dementia, oftentimes the spouse takes early retirement to become a caregiver. Children are coming home from college to stay with their mom or dad–or they’re leaving a job. It has an enormous impact on families.”
It’s no wonder why emotion sometimes pours out of individuals when they come across the car and Racing to End Alzheimer’s.
Street cars, too: Racing to End Alzheimer’s has also hosted cross-country road tours to raise both funds and awareness. Photography Credit: David S. Wallens
“People come up to me all the time and they’ll say, ‘Oh, it’s my mother-in-law or my neighbor’s brother or … ’ Everybody has somebody in their life that they know that’s been affected by this disease,” Phil notes.
“My job at the race track is to educate, but probably my most important job is to be chief hugger, because we end up doing a lot of hugging,” he continues. “People will be having a conversation with me and, all of the sudden, their eyes glass up thinking about the person that’s been affected. For most of them, I reach out and give them a hug and say, ‘It’s okay. It’s my wife, too. I know.’”
Perhaps more than money, more than celebrating those who valiantly live with the disease, Racing to End Alzheimer’s provides something far more important. “For me, this gives me some purpose,” says Phil. “Watching someone go through this disease, the two things that come to mind are how helpless you feel and how hopeless you feel. So, I feel this is my calling and my opportunity to do something.”
