9/28/2018 0 Comments Memory Café launches in HugoHUGO — A concept that originated in the Netherlands is slowly seeping into the U.S. and becoming more and more popular in Minnesota. Every fourth Wednesday of the month, FamilyMeans will host a Walking Memory Café from 1:30-3 p.m. at Rice Lake Centre, 6900 137th St. N., Hugo. A memory café is a welcoming place for individuals with Alzheimer’s or any type of dementia or other brain disorders, as well as their caregivers. Whereas some cafés focus more on education, others may implement activities. A unique element of Hugo’s café is that participants will get a little bit of exercise. “The ultimate goal is the social connection to others in your community,” said FamilyMeans Community Educator Jenny West. “We are hoping the later afternoon is a good time because some people might nap during that time, so it will keep them awake, get them outdoors, get them that physical exercise and maybe that will help them sleep at night.” FamilyMeans, a nonprofit organization headquartered in Stillwater, offers a variety of services such as financial and bankruptcy services and education; counseling and mental health services; divorce services; caregiver support and youth enrichment programs. In 2016, the organization began offering a 10-week Memory Club twice each year for individuals in the early stage of diagnosis as well as their caregivers. “At the end of every session, I would have people say, ‘Well, now what? We want to stay connected to the people we have met through the club,’” West said. “After every session, I would tell my boss we needed to do a memory café.” FamilyMeans set a goal to start cafés in Washington County by the end of 2017. In June, the first one was rolled out in Lake Elmo, another in Woodbury in July and one in Cottage Grove in August. Hugo hosted its first earlier this week on Sept. 26. In Anoka County, there are currently two memory cafés, one in Coon Rapids and another in Fridley. The first half of Hugo’s café session will focus on discussion and education. During the second half, participants can walk around Rice Lake Centre (if they choose) while talking with people who understand what they are going through. “The biggest part of a memory café is a community setting that can be open to everyone and to connect others,” West explained. “They share something in common and what that commonality is, is a dementia diagnosis. And they share their journey, their wisdom, they share time together, but it is in a relaxed environment.” Mary Rivard, ForeverWell coordinator at the Forest Lake YMCA, heard about the new memory café and couldn’t be more thrilled for Hugo. Rivard has a very personal experience with memory cafés, as her 91-year-old mother attended one in St. Paul for a year and a half. “It was really good with my mom’s early-stage dementia. It was good to go to a group that was full of new and different faces, of different ages, husbands, wives, daughters, mothers, friends bringing friends,” she said. “It opened up her world a little bit more and she was able to have more stimulating conversations.” When her mother first started attending the café, Rivard said she was shy and didn’t participate in a lot of the discussions, but toward the end she became the social butterfly she had been before the diagnosis. “It gave her such a comfortable, easy opportunity to connect with other people without feeling judged,” Rivard said, encouraging participants to give the memory cafés more than one try. To sign up for Hugo’s Walking Memory Café, contact West at 651-789-4015 or [email protected].
Editor Shannon Granholm can be reached at 651-407-1227 or [email protected]. The post Memory Café launches in Hugo appeared first on GuaripeteMagazine. via GuaripeteMagazine https://ift.tt/2QivobL
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