Online Class: A ZOOM invitation link will be sent one day before class begins.
FREE This class is being offered by the Michigan Alzheimer’s Association at no cost.
One in ten people over age 65 likely has some form of dementia, most often caused by a progressive brain disease such as Alzheimer’s. In the first part of this class, we will learn about the kinds of difficulties dementia causes with memory, planning, thinking, visual perceptions, judgment, and behavior, among other aspects of daily life. Learn how easy it is to be a dementia friend, helping your relatives and friends to live their daily lives in the community with less difficulty and more dignity. People with dementia may eventually need full time help at home or a facility at the very end of their journey, but for many years before then, they face various difficulties in their daily lives out in the community – shopping, banking, dining, going to events, going to church. Dementia friendly communities make a community-wide effort to show organizations how to interact with persons with dementia. The second part of this class will discuss the kinds of dementia-friendly practices businesses and organizations have adopted in dementia friendly cities nationwide.
Jim Mangi has been an Alzheimer’s Association Community Educator since 2019, and has presented education programs to personal caregivers, businesses, cultural institutions, and students. He is the head of Dementia-Friendly Saline, which aims to make Saline, Michigan, a community that respects and welcomes people with dementia. Jim established a Memory Café in his community, which allows those affected by dementia to connect. In addition, Jim provides care for his wife, who is living with Alzheimer’s disease.