Seth Rogen puts away the comedy and discusses a serious topic, Alzheimer's disease.
Seth’s mother-in-law was diagnosed with early onset Alzheimer’s disease when she was just 54 years old. She has sense lost knowledge of her family as well has how to perform daily life functions, such as feeding herself. Rogen claims it was these personal experiences that led him to want to increase awareness of the the financial burden Alzheimer’s disease has on those it effects, as well as educate young adults about the disease. Rogen’s speech to congress was just part of a longer hearing which included appearances from various experts on the disease.
In his heartfelt account of his experience with the disease’s high monetary cost, he stated how lucky he is that he is able to help pay for the needed assistance. He fears what people with less financial blessings do when a member of their family is stricken with this degenerative disease.
Rogen does throw in a few humorous lines, but keeps his tone very serious. He speaks of the charity which he help found, Hilarity for Charity. It is an organization dedicated to raising awareness of the disease among young adults, as well as raising funds for both research and families effected by the disease. According to Rogen, 18 schools have already committed to hosting events for the charity. The charity also works with the Alzheimer’s Association.
This was not a meaningless appearance for Rogen, he truly wanted his case heard and wasn’t afraid to call out senators for not paying attention. Later that day, he tweeted at Senator Mark Kirk asking why he left before his speech. Kirk did have a meeting to attend and was there for many of the speeches prior to Rogen’s. Kirk politely tweeted back stating such and that the two should keep in touch. Kirk did have his photograph taken with Rogen earlier in the day.
Rogen discussed his disappointment in the turnout of senators for his portion of the overall Alzheimer’s hearing, that evening on Hardball with Chris Matthews. He even called out two senators for falling asleep towards the beginning of all the expert testimonies.
THANK YOU, SETH! 🙂
