Keeping Focus

My husband, Charley Akers, grew up in Charlotte where at the early age of 7, he developed a love of photography, snapping shots of everything with his beloved Kodak Instamatic 304, complete with its film canisters in those early days. When he entered Myers Park High School, he was particularly inspired by a photography class he took. He even turned his bedroom closet into a dark room! 

Later, he was fortunate to attend the prestigious Brooks Institute of Photography in California. After graduation, he returned to the South and began a photography business in Atlanta. His clients, including Amoco Oil, AT&T, Coca-Cola, Hotel Del Coronado, Kodak, Omni Hotels, Playboy Enterprises, UPS, and Wachovia, were numerous and globally recognized Fortune 500 firms, as was his award-winning photography.

After several years on the West Coast where he honed his skills at portraiture, we moved back to the South in 2012 and were drawn to the appeal of the Western North Carolina mountains, making our home in Asheville.  Noticing his repetitive questions and a change in behavior, Charley and I learned he had mild cognitive degeneration in 2017 and by 2024 he was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s. 

The disease affects our lives in many ways. But Charley retains his interests, like hitting tennis balls, especially with our dog, Cody, who brings us both joy. Charley also holds fast to his amazing artistic talents, enjoying photographic composition in particular.  His appreciation for the natural beauty of the mountains continues, and he loves our leisurely travels along and around the Blue Ridge Parkway with its many photographic opportunities.  

We learned about the unique model of care of MemoryCare from our primary care doctor and enrolled as a family in 2022.  From our first 3-hour visit with the team of a specialized physician and a care manager, we have been impressed and grateful. The team encouraged me to take “Caregiver College,” a series of six, three-hour lectures for caregivers of people with memory disorders.  I appreciated all of the resources from caregiver services to lawyers, and information to help me understand more about what was happening to Charley’s brain, and how important it is for me, as his caregiver, to take care of myself.  

 MemoryCare has been a wonderful resource for us from the Caregivers’ College to the ongoing support by their teams. They have helped us both navigate this difficult journey step by step. We are truly grateful for all their services.

— Julia and Charley Akers

See more of Charley’s photography at CharleyAkersPhoto.com.