Filmmaker David Cooper on the making of “The Call”

Filmmaker David Cooper on the making of “The Call”

My interest in Alzheimer’s disease stems from the fact that my grandmother, to whom I was very close, died of the condition when I was 18. Watching her illness progress gave me first-hand experience of the impact that this illness can have, both on the affected person, and on us as a family as we cared for her in her later years. I vividly remember the helplessness that I felt as I watched her dementia insidiously progress. Being a practical person, I desperately wished that there was something I could do to help.

Tips and resources: making the most of Family Day

Tips and resources: making the most of Family Day

When it comes to visiting Mom, I like the normal days, where my only expectation is to “connect” with my mom. The days I don’t like are holidays: birthdays, Christmas, Thanksgiving, Family Day – they all remind me of better times. I feel so overwhelmed by the Mom I have lost, that I don’t have the energy to “find” the Mom who is left behind. On these occasions I enlist my family members or friends to come with me. I…

Read More Read More

Redstone Lake Hockey Tournament raises $13,000

Redstone Lake Hockey Tournament raises $13,000

On January 24, Peter de Maio held the second annual Redstone Lake Pond Hockey Classic. The tournament had been turned into a fundraiser for the Alzheimer Society, through our Memory Makers website, after Peter’s Father, Dominic de Maio, passed away from Alzheimer’s disease the previous year. The participants raised over $13,000 to help fund programs and services provided by the Alzheimer Society and research for a cure. Outstanding work everyone! Your generosity has made a difference. Here are some photos…

Read More Read More

How I helped a senior find her way

How I helped a senior find her way

Last summer, I was sitting with friends on a balcony facing the entrance to a Toronto subway station. We watched as an older woman walked back and forth across the street next to the subway station. She seemed confused, walking against the light, and in pain. Alarmed, we went down to the street to see if we could help.  After speaking with her for a minute or so, I was sure she had some kind of dementia. Although she knew…

Read More Read More

My mother is living with Alzheimer’s disease. Here’s how getting a diagnosis has empowered us

My mother is living with Alzheimer’s disease. Here’s how getting a diagnosis has empowered us

My mother, Bruna was officially diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease in January of 2011. The disease was not unknown to her family. Three of her sisters died of complications resulting from this creeping and subtle sickness, as well as her paternal grandmother. Not long after the second time she had become disoriented while driving and her ever increasing lapses in recall, I decided to take her to visit her doctor. What if she ended up hurting herself, or worse, someone else? I could never forgive myself.

Behind the scenes at the Finding Your Way phase 2 launch

Behind the scenes at the Finding Your Way phase 2 launch

On January 28, 2014, the Alzheimer Society of Ontario launched phase 2 of Finding Your Way, an innovative public safety initiative to help people with dementia stay safe while staying active.  Portuguese, Italian and Spanish were added to the program, which already consists of French, English, Punjabi, Traditional and Simplified Chinese. These were the photos I took in the midst of the media scrum.

Susan Parish: Champion for Dementia

Susan Parish: Champion for Dementia

As a graduate from nursing at Western, Susan understood the devastating impact of dementia.  Prior to retirement, she worked for ten years in a long-term care home in Lindsay, where many residents had Alzheimer’s disease. It was after retirement that Susan noticed unsettling cognitive changes. During the summer and fall of 2009, Susan began to feel very nervous when driving. Her husband Brian also noticed subtle changes in spelling, numeracy, comprehension, memory and coordination.  After a prompt referral to a…

Read More Read More

On-ice showdown for Alzheimer’s disease

On-ice showdown for Alzheimer’s disease

On January 24, I will be hosting the fifth annual Red Stone Lake Pond Hockey invitational, an outdoor hockey tournament on Piccadilly Bay in Haliburton, Ontario. But this classic Canadian weekend of intense on-ice competition is about more than victory. Through Memory Makers for Alzheimer’s, we’ve turned the tournament into a fundraiser in honour of my father, Don de Maio, who passed away from Alzheimer’s disease last year. Our house on Piccadilly Bay once belonged to my father, who always…

Read More Read More

How a diagnosis helped my mom

How a diagnosis helped my mom

At first, it was small changes. My mother was losing things and getting on the wrong bus. But then I began to notice more unsettling changes. She wasn’t taking care of herself, slept a lot during the day and was becoming even more confused. I knew something was wrong. I took her to her doctor. We got the always shocking, but ultimately expected news. She had dementia. I felt mixed emotions. But knowing the source of my mother’s difficulties was…

Read More Read More

What is ambiguous loss and grief? / Qu’est-ce que le deuil blanc?

What is ambiguous loss and grief? / Qu’est-ce que le deuil blanc?

If you are living with dementia or supporting someone who is, you may be experiencing a ‘roller coaster’ of emotions. Some days are so good you tend to forget about the dementia altogether. Other days, the smallest thing can send you to tears. Still other days you might feel a nagging sadness that you just can’t shake – even though nothing particularly sad has happened recently.

This ‘roller coaster’ can be related to the ups and downs of feeling grief – yes, a similar kind of grief that we feel when we lose someone dear to us.