Today’s meeting was informative for our community of interested caregivers and dementia services.  Julie McGee, Director of the Area Agency on Aging, discussed the result of the survey taken at the last meeting.  An opportunity was given for participants to sign up for future committees.

Gay Watson, the Area Agency Outreach Coordinator,  reviewed the upcoming Senior Expo and encouraged all to attend.

2014 Mobile Senior Lifestyle Expo (2)Sponsor-booth contract Senior Expo 2014

Della Sanchez, AL Cares Coordinator, made her big announcement that the first Caregiver College is slated for Tuesday, June 10 and Wednesday, June 11 from 10:00 to noon each day.  Email Della at dellasanchez@sarpc.org for more information and to sign up as space is limited.

Alzheimer’s and Dementia Coalition of South Alabama

April 2014

The Alzheimer’s and Dementia Coalition of 

South Alabama and our partners invite you to attend 

their community meeting on 

Wednesday, April 2, 2014 

Five Rivers Resource Center– Blakely Hall 

30945 Five Rivers Blvd, Spanish Fort, AL 36526 

10:00 am—11:30 am 

10:00 a.m. Greetings – Julie McGee, Director, Area Agency on Aging

Discussion of Survey

10:15 a.m. Agency Announcements –Coalition Members

10:30 a.m. Senior Resource Guide information and 2014 Senior Expo

Gay Watson, Outreach Coordinator

10:45 a.m. Caregiver College Announcement,

Della Sanchez, AL Cares Coordinator

11:30 a.m. Adjourn

Area Agency on Aging – 251-706-4650

Della Sanchez, LGSW, AL Cares Coordinator

Don’t miss the January 22, 2014 at Five Rivers Delta.

Speakers from support groups and dementia services will present information that you want to know.

Meeting begins at 10 am and ends at 11:30 am.

Click Alzheimer and Dementia Coalition meeting for the flyer about the details.

This purple wreath helped guide the participants to our meeting place today at the Five Rivers Delta Resource Center.  We had a great turnout and heard valuable information from Julie McGee, Director of the Area Agency on Aging. Mrs. McGee gave a brief history of the Coalition and it’s first project – the Helpline – and then introduced her good friend, Gayle Boswell, who is the Area Agency Director in Montgomery, AL.  Mrs. Boswell shared some exciting news about what they are doing with grant money for CNA training in nursing homes.

Della Sanchez, Alabama Cares Coordinator, was making it all happen and handing out information as people arrived.

The next speaker was yours truly, Beth Reinert, who spoke about finding information on the internet to help with dementia care. Caregiversunite.org blog and Facebook page was shown on the screen, a prize was given for making a comment on the Facebook page and there was a question and answer period that followed.  The remaining members of the Coalition were given a chance to tell about themselves and what they are doing:

Laura Harrington of E. A. Roberts Alzheimer Center told of their recent successful open house and stated the center would be open one Saturday a month for Adult Day Care along with their regular weekday schedule.

Gina Germany of Touching Hearts Senior Care told about the Gulf Coast Senior Alliance and the Gulf Coast Dementia Services.  She announced a conference in April that will feature Teepa Snow as the speaker.

Janet Rich Pittman, Director of Marketing at Brookside Retirement Community, told of her passion for teaching about Brain Health and dementia prevention.

Leslie Johnson of Covenant Hospice brought us up to date on the support groups available in Baldwin County.  See the recent post detailing the times and dates of those meetings.

We also heard from a DETA trainer, Martha Allegri, who is available to speak and teach about dementia through Alzbrain.org.

I am excited about the interest shown today and all the people I met who I hope to introduce you to soon via this blog. Thank you all for coming. Long live the Alzheimer and Dementia Coalition of South Alabama!

The Area Agency on Aging is pleased to announce its new dedicated Alzheimer’s helpline.  It provides free, trusted, unbiased information about services available in Mobile, Baldwin and Escambia Counties for individuals and families affected by Alzheimer’s disease and related dementias.  The phone is answered Monday through Friday from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. on normal business days.  The service is provided in partnership with the Alzheimer’s &  Dementia Coalition of South Alabama.

I’ve had the privilege to work alongside Julie McGee lately and she is a game changer.  She knows her field of expertise and wields a powerful sword.  Yet, she carries herself with grace and has a calm presence.  You’d never know that she has a resume 4 pages long full of impressive accomplishments.

Julie has been diligently working for the betterment of Mobile residents since 1979.  Housed in the GM&O building downtown, she currently reigns as Area Agency on Aging Director for the South Alabama Regional Planning Commission.Under her leadership for the last 16 years, she has required excellence from her staff, which recently earned them an award given by the National Council on Aging to only three projects in the nation.  The benefits of this award will help the elderly and disabled of Alabama to achieve more economic security, move out of poverty, and be able to successfully remain in their own homes and live independently. This is just one of the many accomplishments that her local organization has achieved.

I’m writing this because Julie took the time to listen to a caregiver (me) who saw an unmet need in the community, organized a meeting of professionals in the dementia field to address that need and invited me along as well.  As a result, we have formed the Alzheimer and Dementia Coalition of South Alabama and created a helpline as a community resource for Alzheimer and dementia information.  What a privilege to come along and see how she gets things done.  You are the first to get a gold star, Julie McGee.  Thanks for making a difference.

The Alzheimer’s and Dementia Coalition in partnership with the Area Agency on Aging of South Alabama Regional Planning Commission opened a helpline to assist with concerns or questions about Alzheimer’s and Dementia. The number is (251) 706-4680.