Our objective is to support those living with dementia and their carers in our local area, by providing memory cafés and other activities which provide support, help to relieve isolation and to signpost people to the appropriate services. We also work to raise awareness of the issues faced by people living with dementia and their carers, and to increase understanding amongst the wider community to support their interactions with those living with dementia.
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We are fundraising for our two welcoming memory cafes, Cafe 22 and Cafe 23. Our cafés offer a meeting place for people living with dementia (guests) and their carers to chat, ask questions and share information. They offer a place to reminisce, to make friends and share experiences. The trained volunteers look after the guests’ needs and will aid and engage with them in many varied activities or will simply to be there to lend an ear. All of our volunteers and trustees devote their time on an entirely voluntary basis.
The core activities of the café include art, craft, puzzles, uplifting gym sessions, singing and reminiscence sessions, to a background of teas, cakes and chat. However, we have ambitions to expand the range of activities, to improve social connectedness and stimulate our guests, improving their wellbeing and quality of life. For example, we would like our guests to explore nature. They already take part in nature-based activities such as seedling planting or flower arranging, but we would like to organise a visit to a petting farm or similar, invite a visit by a therapy animals (dogs, or even pigs) and arrange a trip to a National Trust site or place of historical or natural interest. Music is another therapeutic activity. Alongside existing singalongs, we would like to be able to invite soloists, choirs, specialist music therapists and more live music performers, particularly covering the 1940s to 1960s era, which has particular resonance for many of our guests. We are also looking into the possibility of taking the group to a local theatre as a special celebratory outing.
We have witnessed the great benefit of our services to both our guests and carers, through verbal feedback or simply by seeing the smiles on our guests faces. Some of our carers have been struggling to cope with the situation at home; they feel isolated and have found it almost impossible to obtain information and help or even to talk with others who really understand the day-to-day problems they are encountering. The expansion of activities would help provide greater respite for the carers. For the guests, the additional activities would help extend social interaction beyond the immediate group, offering more variety and stimulation.
We have guests at different stages on their dementia journey; those with more advanced symptoms light up in the warm and engaging environment we already have. The funds raised would enable us to provide a wider offering to all guests, regardless of where they are on their journey, and would help us to meet our objectives. We are working to create a supportive community where we share information, we listen encourage, and help people to feel connected and therefore far less isolated from society.