Eileen Smith

Eileen was a loving daughter, sister, cousin, wife, aunt, mother, friend and most importantly, Grammy. She was the embodiment of joy, full of laughter and life. Mom was quick to offer a compliment, lend a helping hand or be a shoulder to cry on. Eileen loved unconditionally and shared her love and kindness with everyone she met. She taught her children how to live a life of gratitude, to see the glass half full and to always pay it forward.

Eileen was diagnosed with early onset Alzheimer’s Disease in December of 2020. She was only 68 years old, and we suspect she began this process over a decade prior. It started with the hallmark forgetfulness and repetition. For someone as sharp as mom, she was an accountant and had a photographic memory, we felt something wasn’t quite right. She had been diagnosed with chronic Lyme Disease so at first, we thought it was “brain fog”. But the fog never lifted. Thankfully, she was able to live a normal life for many years. Only her close family and friends noticed the lapses in her memory. But it gradually worsened.

After a medical scare which landed her in the ICU, we met a neurologist who would finally guide us in the right direction. After 7 long months, we began testing which took several more months. The conclusion of which was a diagnosis of moderate stage early onset Alzheimer’s Disease. In that moment, we couldn’t fully grasp the gravity of this.

As time passed, there were more changes. We hired a home companion. Mom began hallucinating and would suddenly not recognize dad. She was up at night and restless. She was having frequent dizzy spells during the day, making her nauseous and forcing her to stay in bed. She missed many events and get togethers in her last year at home. We knew it was time to move them to Assisted Living. Mom declined quickly and within a few months, we were moving her again to memory care which is where she resided for less than 2 years before her passing. Again, there were many changes, struggles and decisions that had to be made during this time. There were calls at all hours of the night, many medication changes, falls, hospital visits and so on. Her care needs changed regularly and we did the absolute best we could do to meet them. In the end, we remained steadfast in our commitment to love and support her, staying by her side around-the-clock.

We would like to take a moment to acknowledge the incredible care mom received at her residence, Brightview Eatontown (Wellspring Village) and from Ennoble hospice. Her care team was second to none. They were so attentive and loving, treating mom like their own. They guided us in her final journey and comforted us after her last breath. We are forever grateful for them.

Mom’s memory will live on as part of the Mom’s Memories team in the Walk to fight Alzheimer’s. We will continue walking in celebration of her life and to one day #ENDALZ. Thank you to everyone donating to Alzheimer’s New Jersey in Eileen’s honor.