Community Partners Receives Grant for Dementia Education

37 organizations across Minneso­ta have been awarded $4.4 million collectively in state grant funds to “support creativity and innovation in assisting individuals suffering from dementia-related illnesses,” according to a press release from the Arrowhead Area Agency on Ag­ing. They congratulated the Arrow­head region organizations, includ­ing Community Partners Living at Home Program in Two Harbors, on being awarded the competitive grant administered by the Minne­sota Board on Aging. The Minne­sota Legislature has annually put $750,000 towards dementia grant funding since 2015.

Community Partners intends to use their grant funding, a total of $114,000, towards three proj­ects. The first is a two-year pro­gram called “Reading to Connect”. Somewhat like a book club, but geared for individuals with demen­tia, Reading to Connect can meet one on one in a home, or in a group setting at the Two Harbors Public Library. The program encourages social interaction, and books will be chosen revolving around com­mon themes many can relate to, such as gardening, work, or pets. A Montessori model is the inspira­tion for the structure of Reading to Connect, as a facilitator will set up the program, but the structure is left loose, with plenty of time for group discussion. One-on-one home visits can be scheduled through Megan at Community Partners, and Hannah is the contact person at the library.

The second project is the Victory Choir in Two Harbors, which meets on Fridays from 10 a.m. to 12 p.m. at the Two Harbors Community Hall. The first hour is for singing, and the second is a social hour. The choir is for individuals with demen­tia, and its goal is to improve cogni­tion through singing familiar tunes. A Celebration of Song is held at the end of each seasonal session.

An education series is the third project. Titled “The Aging Journey: What We Need to Know and Do”, the series will cover many aging related topics and bring in vari­ous guest speakers, such as mental health professionals and represen­tatives from the Alzheimer’s As­sociation and Aspirus Lake View. The first session was held Septem­ber 17 and discussed aging well, ageism, and the fact that we are all aging. October’s session will be on the 15th and will cover what one should know about retirement, in­cluding the emotional transition of retiring from a career. More infor­mation can be found on Communi­ty Partners’ Facebook page https://www.facebook.com/Communi­tyPartnersTH/.  

Additional funds from the grant will go towards hiring an outreach and social worker who will be at the Two Harbors Public Library once a week to offer support to senior cit­izens. Thank you to the Minnesota Board on Aging and to Community partners for making these opportu­nities possible for those in our com­munity.