Annie Lees’ voice still breaks when she tells the story of how, years ago, she reached a turning point in her life.
It happened at a St. Paul Saints game. Lees, an actress at the time, had been hired to entertain the audience between innings. After doing her bit, she liked to chat with audience members.
“So I started talking to this older man,” she said. “And I had no experience with anyone with any sort of memory stuff, but I could tell pretty quickly that he was not tracking.
“So he talked and talked and talked and he shared so much about his life. We both stood there and talked for, I don’t know, an hour or whatever. And [his] whole family was there. So anyway, then I went on my way, and after the game his daughter comes up to me. And she was emotional. And she said, ‘My dad ...’”
Lees stopped. She paused for a long moment.
“I still can’t even ...” she said.
She continued in a quavering voice. “She said, ‘My dad has Alzheimer’s, and for you to stand there and talk to him was so amazing. Don’t ever stop doing what you’re doing.’”
Time passed. Then one day, Lees was working at another Saints game and the daughter found her again. “She said, ‘I just want you to know that I’m so happy to see that you’re still doing this. My father has since passed on, but we will never forget what you gave to him that day.”