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Jack Vander Lugt and his mother, Danya Vander Lugt, walking back to the Ramada Inn on West Washington St.
Jack walked alongside his mother Danya.. She was visiting Marquette from Freemount to take a vacation and to celebrate Jack's recent engagement.
"My greatest joy is my children and just being able to come up and spend time with Jack. And I love being outdoors," Danya said.
Jack graduated from Northern Michigan University with a degree in outdoor education. Now he works as the regional director for the Alzheimer's Association. Jack expressed that his own diabetes diagnosis sparked a passion for helping others with chronic medical issues such as Alzheimers.
"There's a lot of hope," he said. "And love. Especially for caregivers. There's cutting edge research coming out, and the hope of a cure is very much alive. It's just really important that people get educated on this because then we can get people who are passionate about volunteering or scientists who want to get involved. But on the flip side the greatest struggle is definitely seeing the effects of the disease on the people that have it. You know it can be scary. It can be hard to live with. But, you know, I've learned a lot from seniors that have the disease because they're living for today and not for tomorrow. It's really about the little things for them."
Before the pair walked away a man with a Labradoodle came bounding across the road. Jack waved and explained, "That's my dad." The dog's name was Rosie and she ran up to Jack and Danya, happy to reunite the family. (Journal photo by Caroline Ray)