It was good to see an encouraging level of attendance at two recent events in our Diocese; events that focused on how we get alongside people with dementia and stay with them on their difficult journey.
Fr Michael
The event at St Aidan’s in Baildon was organised by Growing Old Grace-fully and welcomed nearly 30 people to a gathering led by our own poet-priest, Fr Michael McCarthy. It was uplifting to see such a diverse group of people, both religious and lay, come together to talk about how we can enable life to be enriched for those who develop dementia as well as those who care for them. By reading excerpts from his latest book of poetry, The Healing Station, Fr Michael helped ensure the voices of people with dementia were heard so that their personhood is brought out. Gaynor Hammond, a Baptist Minister and author of a number of excellent practical books on spirituality and dementia, led the session after lunch reflecting on what we can do to make our own parishes more dementia-friendly.
Ted Britton, MHA
The women’s group at The Immaculate Heart of Mary in Leeds organised a wonderful day offering lots of ideas and inspiration on responding to people with dementia. Gaynor Hammond led the first session of the day offering lots of practical suggestions to help connect individually with people living with dementia. Ted Britton, Chaplaincy Advisor from Methodist Homes (MHA), invited us to explore the Gospel message of acceptance, love and hope for those living with dementia, and those who care for them. We also heard presentations from the Royal Voluntary Service, Carers Leeds, MAECare and the Alzheimer’s Society to help us understand what local support is available.
The joys and challenges of being alongside people living with dementia are worth sharing and it was great to hear of some of resources and responses that might spark our own ideas.
If you would like to discuss how Growing Old Grace-fully might help support older people with dementia or their carers in your parish, please get in touch. We’d love to hear from you.