The 36-Hour Day Challenge
To Be Announced 2026
The 36-Hour Challenge exists to transform endurance into empathy, raise global awareness, fund research, support caregivers, and accelerate the fight to end Alzheimer’s, dementia, and memory-loss diseases.
Why the 36-Hour Challenge?
The inspiration for the 36-Hour Day Challenge comes from the influential and widely trusted book, The 36-Hour Day, written by Nancy L. Mace and Peter V. Rabins.
For generations, this book has guided families and caregivers through the realities of caring for loved ones living with Alzheimer’s and dementia. Its title reflects a truth many families come to know intimately:
Some days feel longer than 24 hours.
They are days filled with uncertainty, emotional strain, exhaustion, love, patience, heartbreak, and hope, often all at the same time.
The 36-Hour Day Challenge was created to honor those days, and the families who live them.
Our Personal Why
This challenge is deeply personal to our founder, David Pellegrin, his wife Evelyn, and their son Donovan, a family walking this journey together.
In 2009, David began noticing subtle changes in his mother, repeated stories, familiar questions asked again, small moments that felt off but were easy to dismiss. Over the next few years, those early signs became clearer. A few years later, David’s mother, Diane “DeeDee” Pellegrin, was formally diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease. Since that time, DeeDee has faced the progression of memory loss with remarkable grace, resilience, and quiet strength.
Like millions of families around the world, the Pellegrin family has experienced how Alzheimer’s reshapes everyday life:
The emotional toll shared across generations
The physical and mental exhaustion felt by families as a whole
The grief of watching memories fade
The love required from everyone to keep moving forward together
This event is a tribute to DeeDee, and to every family walking this journey, often without enough resources, understanding, or support.
What the 36 Hours Represent
For families living with Alzheimer’s, dementia, and memory loss, time doesn’t follow a normal clock.
A single day can feel endless.
The constant vigilance.
The emotional strain.
The shared responsibility carried by families — hour after hour.
The 36 hours reflect this lived reality. They represent the way caregiving stretches beyond a traditional 24-hour day, becoming something longer, heavier, and more demanding — yet deeply rooted in love.
The 36 hours symbolize:
The extended, exhausting days families navigate together
The emotional and physical weight shared by caregivers and loved ones
The unrelenting nature of a disease that never pauses
Participants commit to 36 continuous hours as an act of empathy — standing with families who live this reality every day, and working together to raise awareness, provide support, and help move us closer to a cure.
More Than a Challenge — A Movement for Families
The 36-Hour Day Challenge exists to:
Raise global awareness for Alzheimer’s, dementia, and memory loss
Support families and caregivers navigating the daily realities of the disease
Fund research dedicated to treatment, care advancements, and ultimately a cure
Build community for families who often feel isolated in their journey
This is not about competition, it is not a race.
This is not about personal endurance alone.
This is about families standing with families, and communities standing with them.
How It Works
Form a team of four
Raise funds to support families, research, and advocacy efforts
Commit to 36 straight hours of shared effort and purpose
Stand together in support of families affected by Alzheimer’s and dementia
Every hour honors families.
Every team represents unity.
Every dollar moves us closer to answers, and a cure.
Join Us
The 36-Hour Day Challenge is building toward a future where:
Families are supported, not isolated
Caregivers are strengthened by community
And Alzheimer’s no longer defines family stories
Together, families endure.
Together, families stand.
Together, we work toward a cure.
Be Part of the Beginning
To Be Announced 2026
This first 36-Hour Day Challenge sets the foundation for what we hope will become an international annual event. By getting involved now, you’re not just supporting a cause, you’re helping shape a legacy built on empathy, community, and purpose.
How Do I Get Involved?
There are many ways to be part of the 36-Hour Day Challenge — whether you want to roll up your sleeves, rally a team, support the mission, or help build something meaningful from the ground up.
Volunteer
Be part of the heart of the event. Volunteers help with coordination, logistics, team support, check-ins, and community engagement. It’s a powerful way to serve families affected by Alzheimer’s while being part of a global movement in its very first year.
Join a Team
Form or join a four-person team and take part in the 36-hour challenge together. Teams commit to supporting one another, raising funds, and standing in solidarity with families living with Alzheimer’s, dementia, and memory loss.
Sponsor a Team
Support a team’s journey by sponsoring their participation. Team sponsorships help cover event costs, amplify fundraising efforts, and directly support research, family resources, and awareness initiatives.
Discipline Sponsor
Align your brand with one of the challenge disciplines — such as kayaking, cycling, or running. Discipline sponsors receive prominent recognition while supporting the physical and symbolic pillars of the event.
Corporate Sponsor
Partner with us at the highest level to help launch and grow this global initiative. Corporate sponsors play a critical role in expanding awareness, increasing research funding, and building long-term support for families worldwide.