Brad Paisley, Tracy Lawrence Among Performers for Alzheimer’s Benefit

Kimberly Williams-Paisley is once again hosting her Dance Party to End ALZ, raising money and awareness for the Alzheimer’s Association, after the loss of her mother, Linda, who passed away in 2016 from a form of Alzheimer’s. The event will be held on November 13 at the Wildhorse Saloon in downtown Nashville.

This year’s event will include Williams-Paisley’s husband, Brad Paisley, along with Tracy Lawrence, Dierks Bentley with Hot Country Knights, Jay Allen, Kelleigh Bannen, Melinda Doolittle, Lindsay Ell, Charles Esten and Chrissy Metz. Bannen will serve as the host, along with Williams-Paisley and her siblings, Ashley Williams and Jay Williams. The artists will perform their favorite songs from the ’90s.

It was at her wedding when Williams-Paisley first noticed something amiss with her mother, when she struggled to read a Bible passage. The disease progressed quickly, with her mother ultimately ending up in a long-term care facility, when living at home proved too dangerous and time-consuming. While the actress mourned who her mother was, she learned to find joy in their new normal, in spite of the challenges.

“It was a great lesson for me in embracing the person in front of me and being strictly in the moment—which, I realized, she was.” Williams-Paisley told Parade, adding that her mother was still teaching her, much as she had done throughout her entire life.

“I realized she was still my teacher in so many ways,” Williams-Paisley notes. “It’s a horrible disease, but to be able to embrace the blessings within it was a gift.”

Now, the mother of two is passionate about helping others who experienced the same devastating loss she and her family did, and doing all she can to help find a cure for the various forms of Alzheimer’s.

“So many caregivers and family members feel so much guilt about everything,” Williams-Paisley says. “[From] ‘I’m not doing a good enough job’ to ‘I did this wrong’ … There’s no graceful way through it, really. It’s a very complicated illness.”

To date, the Dance Party to End ALZ has raised more than $1.3 million, with all proceeds going directly to the Alzheimer’s Association’s research program.

The event begins at 6:00 PM. Tickets are available here.