- November 1, 2024
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When Tamar Boorstin was just a baby, she was adopted by a couple who couldn’t have children of their own. Eight years ago, Boorstin’s parents were both diagnosed with Alzheimer’s at the same time. As a 34-year-old, she had to stop everything and become their caregiver in her Orlando-area home.
“I took care of them — whatever they needed, because immediately they can’t drive and they can’t do things. So, I stepped in to do that for them,” she said. “They adopted me and gave me a great life. Now it’s my turn; they needed me.”
After seven years of doctor's appointments and countless pharmacy runs, Boorstin’s parents were put into a memory care facility in Ormond Beach for their own safety, as she said they’d start to wander from home when she would leave for work.
“It takes a toll on you; I became a different person,” she said. “I put on a lot of weight. I became unhealthy because all I cared about was them. I wasn’t taking care of myself.”
With her parents in good hands, Boorstin moved to Palm Coast about two years ago to start her dream business. As a nature-lover, Boorstin opened Wild Birds Unlimited in Island Walk Shopping Center in December 2017.
“When I moved them to memory care, I said they would want me now to live my life. I didn’t get married, I didn’t have kids, I was taking care of them. … And this is my passion: nature and birds and everything about that. I said, ‘I’m going to do this; I’m going to open this for me here and still be close enough to them.’”
With September being World Alzheimer's Month, Boorstin is using her business as a platform to spread awareness for Alzheimer’s. As many of her customers are retirees, she said she’s heard countless comments about how their family’s lives have been affected by Alzheimer’s and other memory-loss diseases.
“This morning, a lady brought in her mother who wouldn’t speak; you could tell she has something wrong, and she said she has Alzheimer’s,” Boorstin said. “Every day, every person, something like that is brought up. ... It touches everyone here, and we want to do something instead of just pitying it and just saying it is what it is. Because it’s not; we can do something about it.”
So far this month, Boorstin and her Walk to End Alzheimer’s group of seven other people have raised about $2,000 for the Alzheimer’s Association. With each transaction in the store, she said she nicely asks customers if they would like to round up to the nearest dollar, with the upcharge amount going to the cause. She said not a single customer has said no to that request. There’s also a donation jar for loose change that often has up to $20 bills in it from customers. In addition, the store offers birdhouse cleanings for a $10 donation to the cause, which Boorstin said has brought in even larger donations.
Ultimately, Boorstin just hopes that by mentioning Alzheimer’s to her guests, she’s spreading awareness for a cause that’s near to her heart and that affects a lot of her clientele.
“We really create a calm, peaceful environment in here,” Boorstin said as the soft noise of birds chirping filled the store through audio speakers. “We have one customer who is over 90 years old. ... His daughters bring him in here and said he will go nowhere else, he never leaves the home, he will not go out in public anymore, but he asks to come to this store. They bought him a bluebird house; he has bluebirds now nesting in his yard. And that to me is priceless.”
To donate to the Wild Bird Unlimited group, visit https://bit.ly/2pu02n2. Some of the in-person donations are not yet posted online. The Walk to End Alzheimer’s will be at River to Sea Preserve at 9 a.m. on Saturday, Sept. 29, with registration beginning at 8 a.m.
