LYNN — Black-and-white newscasts played on the screen, showing images of the last century — the long lines of the Great Depression, Martin Luther King Jr. before the Lincoln Memorial, a motorcade in Dallas.
As the images cycled, some of the dozen people watching nodded silently, others began to chatter, “Very active, that year,” and, “Oh, yes.” They remembered.
Greater Lynn Senior Services held one of its In the Moment Memory Cafes Thursday at the Lynn Museum & Historical Society. The gathering, at 590 Washington St., happens on the third Thursday of each month from 10 a.m. to noon, and provides a social setting for people with Alzheimer’s disease, and their caregivers.
The focus is always providing a dementia-friendly atmosphere with memory-based activities, and Thursday’s Memory Cafe had an American history theme.
“This is so beneficial for her because she’s at home most of the time, and this gets her out,” said Angelina Brogna, a private, live-in caregiver for Lucy Lincoln, 79, of Marblehead.
“With her peers and the other women and communication, it’s really helped.”
Brogna has provided care for Lincoln for the last five years. Lincoln, who has been struggling with Alzheimer’s for nearly a decade, is noticeably upbeat following each Memory Cafe, Brogna said.
Thursday’s Memory Cafe was led by Taylor Lamberta, a GLSS-licensed independent clinical social worker. Lamberta, in addition to showing the video chronicling American history, led the group in several activities, including a short trivia game about presidents with connections to Massachusetts.
“Which town is JFK from?” she asked.
The responses were swift: “Brookline,” “He was in the Navy, right?”
People with Alzheimer’s disease face daily struggles. Besides having difficulty with memory, they are prone to wandering, and can end up in dangerous situations when leaving their homes unannounced, unaccompanied and unprepared, Brogna said.
They often become familiar to residents and local police because of their Alzheimer’s, but at the Memory Cafe, there is no stigma or focus on illness, but rather an inviting and relaxed social setting with people who have shared experiences, Brogna said.
“They come here and are able to communicate and understand, because they are all in the same boat,” Brogna said.
Brogna said she and Lincoln also go to a Memory Cafe in Nahant on the second Thursday of each month at Nahant Public Library, and she would like to see more Memory Cafes available in other municipalities.
“We do try to go around to all of them,” she said.
Lincoln herself said she enjoys the gatherings, and was happy to have company while she built “log cabins” out of pretzel rods and Marshmallow Fluff. She also enjoyed the history theme in celebration of Presidents’ Day.
“It’s nice, and I met a friend,” said Lincoln, placing her hand on the shoulder of the man seated next to her, David Cresey, of Saugus.
Cresey was not at the Memory Cafe as a person with Alzheimer’s or a caregiver. His wife, Roseann, died last year after battling the illness for more than a decade, and Cresey continues to come to the meetings to socialize and show support.
“I used to come down here with her before she passed away,” Cresey said. “It was interesting, and we always got to meet new people … and there’s good coffee.”
Cresey credits Lamberta with having introduced him and his wife to a program they otherwise would not have known about, and that was ultimately beneficial to his wife’s well-being.
According to Debby Segil, also a GLSS licensed independent clinical social worker, the Memory Cafes are about “providing a safe space” for people to not only feel supported, but have fun. GLSS also solicits donations to keep the program going.
“People in the community at large really care about what we are doing and want to help enrich the lives of our participants,” Segil said.
The Memory Cafe program also has a positive impact on the caregivers, Segil said.
“Caregiving can be very isolating,” she said. “The Memory Cafe provides an opportunity for socialization, networking with others experiencing similar challenges, and a chance for the caregiver and the person they care for to do something together that’s fun and engaging.”
Memory Cafes aren’t only a local phenomenon, but part of an informal, global memory cafe movement to provide a social outlet for people with dementia.
The GLSS Memory Cafes are open to people with other forms of dementia, not just Alzheimer’s disease, and are sponsored by the Family Caregiver Support Program at GLSS with generous funding from DiVirgilio Financial Group. Past Memory Cafes have had music, storytelling, luau, sports, gardening and various holiday-themed gatherings, and the program has served more than 100 people from Lynn, Lynnfield, Marblehead, Nahant, Saugus and Swampscott.
The state-funded Family Caregiver Support Program provides free support to all caregivers, and specializes in helping people and families who are caring for someone with Alzheimer’s disease or related dementias. According to the Alzheimer’s Association, 1 in 9 people ages 65 or older have Alzheimer’s disease. That number is expected to grow as members of the “baby boomer” generation continue to move into the 65-and-older age group.
For more information about the Memory Cafe or the Family Caregiver Support Program, contact Lamberta at 781-586-8511 or [email protected].
