Each month, we’re featuring an advocate who engages with policymakers to ensure priorities that improve the lives of people impacted by Alzheimer’s and all other dementia remain top-of-mind in Congress.

As a teenager, Ben Woodworth of Haysville, Kansas first encountered Alzheimer’s advocacy while attending a local Walk to End Alzheimer’s with his family. Ben found out how he could support the cause and learn more about politics. He quickly signed up and dove head first into his advocacy journey. 

With multiple family members affected by Alzheimer’s, Ben is passionate about the cause. “My great uncle Mike has Alzheimer’s,” said Ben. “He’s a big sports guy, collects memorabilia. He’s a big [Kansas City] Chiefs fan, and right now they’re doing great, but he can’t really remember it. But, he’ll still remember facts from the 1980s and 1990s, but then he doesn’t really remember the [more recent] Super Bowls,” says Ben. “Seeing people go through [their Alzheimer’s journey] in my family… something needs to be done.”

Looking beyond his own family, Ben also wants to stand up for those who don’t have loved ones nearby to support them. Hearing stories and reading social media posts about people living with dementia with little or no support, Ben realized, “I want to fight for the people that don’t have people to fight for them.”

Since becoming an advocate about eight years ago, 22-year-old Ben has attended both the Kansas state advocacy day and AIM Advocacy Forum multiple times. 

“The first year at the Forum, I was sitting back and observing. It was interesting seeing how many people from all over, all the different states, were there,” said Ben. “Something kicked in for me, sitting in the meetings and listening to the other advocates from Kansas share their stories…The second year I asked to lead one of the meetings, which was really cool.”

While Ben enjoys the entire Advocacy Forum experience, from seeing familiar faces, turning Capitol Hill purple, and meeting with his elected officials, his favorite part is the National Alzheimer’s Dinner. “I like the energy in the room. You can tell everybody’s ready to go to the Capitol and get some work done. It’s a nice feeling to have right before our Hill meetings, but it’s also cool because we’ve been able to sit with other states around us and talk about what they’re doing,” said Ben. “I’d say the dinner is the driving force, because that leads into Hill Day.”

A recent college graduate with a degree in political science, Ben has come to understand that progress on Capitol Hill can take time. During a meeting with Sen. Marshall’s (R-KS) office, Ben remembers witnessing progress being made. “A person from Wichita had been on one of the treatments…he had dementia and had to retire from his job. He took the treatment and completely turned around. He actually went back to work,” said Ben. Ben remembers how the advocate sharing his story made an impact on the legislative staffer, who asked questions and wanted to learn more about the advocate’s experience with the treatment. “Even after the meeting, [the legislative staffer] talked with him in the hallway, and Sen. Marshall ended up sponsoring several of our bills. Just seeing that [story] click and it turning into something, that was pretty cool.”

Beyond the Advocacy Forum, Ben keeps up the momentum year-round by attending district events and writing letters to the editor urging Rep. Ron Estes (R-KS-04) to support AIM’s legislative priorities. 

Thanks to dedicated advocates like Ben, three of AIM’s bipartisan policy priorities were signed into law in 2024. When the BOLD Reauthorization Act was signed into law in December, over 1,800 health-related bills had been introduced during the 118th Congress, and of those bills, only 10 had been signed into law. Three of those 10 bills were AIM priorities.

Since his first Walk, Ben has gone from visiting the advocacy table to helping answer questions there as a volunteer. Additionally, he fundraises and serves on the planning committee for the Wichita Walk to End Alzheimer’s, and he has helped with care and support events in the area. 

“I’ve enjoyed [advocacy],” said Ben. “Everything I’ve done I’ve enjoyed. So I will continue to do it.” 

At only 22 years old, Ben sees value in encouraging other young people to join him and become advocates. “I’ve definitely tried to get people into it that I think would be interested. It’s a good cause and it affects so many people,” said Ben. “It’s getting hard to find somebody that has not had a direct impact. I think for our futures, it’s important [to have young advocates join]. It also shows that a wide, diverse array of people care about this cause. If there’s younger people, older people, people in the middle — I feel like it means more when people see that it affects everybody of all ages.”

Learn more about how you can join advocates like Ben who are working to defeat Alzheimer’s and other dementia. Become an advocate today.