This is the 20th Anniversary for Brain Awareness Week (BAW), which is a global campaign to increase public awareness of the progress and benefits of brain research. Every March, BAW unites the efforts of partner organizations worldwide in a celebration of the brain for people of all ages.
The Great Bend Pilot Club and Pilot International are considered outreach organizations working to raise awareness on issues about brain safety and injury prevention and brain relates diseases.  
Members of the Great Bend Pilot Club met with Mayor Mike Allison for the signing of the Brain Awareness Week proclamation. This is the third consecutive year for recognition in Great Bend of this important awareness issue. The club is celebrating the Alliance’s 20 years of education and outreach. Brain Awareness Week is one of it’s greatest successes. Bringing together all sorts of groups and entities and having them cooperate to do public outreach –    
Feeling old is a state of mind, many have said, and the cliché may be truer now than ever. Modern medicine has extended our life span and is now rewriting the old rules of aging. Indeed, “normal aging” may be an outdated and misleading concept, as how people age differs greatly, and many factors influence our quality of life as we get older. Some of the changes to body and mind that are normally associated with aging may not be normal at all but rather the result of treatable health conditions or a lifetime of poor health habits. What may seem like declining mental fitness in older people may actually be symptoms of an illness that should be medically evaluated and treated. For instance, the incidence of depression increases with age. Yet depression, a brain-based illness that can be successfully treated in most people, is often not recognized or treated properly. Many chronic health disorders, such as heart disease and high blood pressure, as well as many of the medications older people may need to take, can cause changes in mental functioning.
Checklist for a Brain-Healthy Lifestyle -- Taken from the Staying Sharp—Dana Alliance pamphlet
DO:
• Exercise your body regularly and get involved in physically
active leisure pursuits.
• Keep your mind exercised! Engage in active learning throughout life, and pursue new experiences.
• Stay socially engaged with friends, family, and community groups.  
• Maintain a positive attitude and a sense of control over your life.  
• Take steps to manage stress.  
• Eat a brain-healthy, balanced diet rich in antioxidants and omega-3 fatty acids, and consider taking a multivitamin supplement that includes antioxidants and folate.
• Mind your numbers: Lose any extra pounds, lower your cholesterol if it is high, and keep your blood glucose and blood pressure under control.
• Get adequate sleep.
• Get proper medical attention and treatment for any underlying health problems.
DON’T:  
• Drink to excess, smoke, or use illicit drugs.
• Ignore sudden changes in mental status. However, don’t be overly concerned about normal slips of memory such as forgetting names or where you put the keys.
• Put off going to the doctor if you notice changes in your physical or mental health.
• Overlook the possibility of drug interactions that can affect mental functioning, especially if you are taking more than one prescription medication.
• Become isolated in your home.
• Think you’re too old to take up something new!