The Lady-Links care about their dear friends, those ladies in our community who have some type of cognitive decline.   Understanding Alzheimer’s and other types of dementia is central to our planning for ways to engage our dear friends whether in person or through a remote activity.  We realize that isolation is one of the worst things for brain health so we are creative in the ways to stay connected.  Making and sending cards is something we enjoy doing and our dear friends enjoy receiving, and serves as a way to help dispel feelings of isolation.

There’s something about opening an envelope, taking out a hand-made card and reading a handwritten note on it that makes anyone feel appreciated, especially our dear friends who often feel lonely and isolated simply because of the nature of their cognitive issue.

Cards help us connect on an emotional level like feeling special that we were in someone’s thoughts.

Cards help us stay connected through common interests such as seasons of the year or special holidays. 

Writing a personal message to our dear friends helps them develop feelings of self-worth.

Getting together to make the cards brings twofold joy…joy in the fellowship of the activity and joy in knowing that our dear friends will be encouraged when they receive them.  It’s our way of dispelling feelings of isolation in our dear friends while helping keep their minds stimulated and active.

The Lady-Links visit dear friends, those ladies in our community who are in some type of cognitive decline.  It can be anything from Mild Cognitive Impairment to Alzheimer’s or other related types of dementia.  To be effective in relating to our dear friends, we find that an understanding of cognitive issues is necessary.  We are fortunate that our retirement community has informative seminars available, not just to us but to all our residents.

Regardless of the type of dementia, socialization is important in the life of the person with cognitive issues.  Socialization can slow symptoms of memory loss, help with self-esteem, and even boost brain health.  In fact, socialization is considered one of the pillars in the treatment of dementia.  The Lady-Links are trained to engage their dear friends in social activities, including conversation.  Knowing how important socialization is to our dear friends encourages the Lady-Links in their efforts to reach out to as many ladies as possible, establishing weekly visits that have such benefits.  The training sessions we attend occur periodically and are often a “lunch and learn” type of seminar.

Learning as we go…the Lady-Links are always looking to increase our own awareness of Alzheimer’s and related types of dementia. We offer help to the families of our dear friends, in that we make being with their loved ones and engaging them in enjoyable activities available on a regular basis.

Socialization with plenty of love and laughter sprinkled in….that’s what we do best!

 

Do the Lady-Links count cards?  Absolutely!  We count it as joy each time we make a card, knowing the benefits that our cards bring.   Since our first visit in 2013 with a dear friend, a lovely lady in our community with Alzheimer’s, making cards has been a very special part of our activities.  In fact, our best estimate is that we’ve made over 1000 cards designed to bring joy to our dear friends and the Lady-Links while we make them, and joy to those in our community who receive them.

These “card connections” as we like to call them are great ways to keep our dear friends engaged in an activity that is fun as well as meaningful.  This  gives an opportunity for our dear friends to feel a sense of altruism knowing that the cards will be used to encourage others.  “Doing for others” is an important concept that often slips away as the dementia progresses in our dear friends’ lives.  It brings the Lady-Links joy to continue to help these sweet ladies stay “linked” to that which is meaningful, such as thinking of others.

Recently, a group of Lady-Links met to write “thinking of you” messages in the fall-themed cards that were colored during visits with one of our dear friends.

We created colorful labels that were used to make the envelopes containing our cards look extra special.

The joy of making and giving these cards throughout the years counts most to us! Here’s just a small sample of what we’ve done:

 

 

Counting cards…with love and laughter…always brings joy.

 

The Lady-Links are committed to helping our dear friends, those ladies in our retirement community with various types of cognitive decline.  We do that through our weekly visits where we engage them in activities they enjoy.  In addition, we attend seminars and training to remain educated, and we participate in events to raise awareness about Alzheimer’s and other types of dementia.  One of the highlights is the Walk to End Alzheimer’s annual event held at our community.  The Lady-Links are always a part of a group effort in this successful walk.

We love our visits with our dear friends, so the theme of this year’s Walk was especially meaningful to us.

The event was a celebration of what we know will happen…one day there will be a cure!  Dancing and a recognition of the significant amount of funds raised added to the festivities.

Showing that we care comes in many forms for the Lady-Links…and walking to end Alzheimer’s is a big part of that caring spirit.

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There’s no doubt about it….The Lady-Links know how to be “social.”  It just comes naturally when we’re together with our dear friends, those ladies in our community in various stages of cognitive decline.  According to certain internet definitions, if you are “social” you enjoy interacting with other people.  That could be a definition of Lady-Links!!!  Our visits are certainly “social” and although we plan for activities that will be appropriate, the love and laughter come spontaneously!

Why is socialization so important?  Studies show that as cognitive decline advances, individuals begin to withdraw from others and isolate themselves which has a negative effect on the brain. For them, thinking has become difficult, and confusion becomes more and more prevalent.   Social interaction is actually healthy for the brain and can slow some symptoms including deteriorating memory.  In fact, socialization can boost self-esteem leading to improved communication skills, eating habits, an increased willingness to exercise and to participate in activities.

At our Lady-Links visits, we engage our dear friends in a variety of social activities  and the benefits are obvious.

Music:

Crafts

 

Games

Show and Tell

Birthday Celebrations

Holiday Celebrations

and other special Activities

We Lady-Links love to engage our dear friends in social activities knowing that it benefits them and us in many ways…plus it’s such fun!  It’s a big part of who we are and what we do.  A blessing for everyone involved.

The Lady-Links program began in 2013 with a simple plan….friends visiting friends.  This straightforward plan has been successful at engaging our dear friends (those ladies in our retirement community in various stages of cognitive decline) in activities they enjoy and find meaningful.  Throughout our Lady-Links history,  we have taken various opportunities to explain how our program works and to recruit new Lady-Links, those ladies who make the visits to the dear friends.  As a result, we currently have 43 Lady-Links who are trained and ready to make visits to their assigned dear friends.

This year, promoting our program took on a new objective:  revising our leadership model to include coordinator positions.

Our community has grown considerably since 2013 and our program has grown as well, bringing about some needed changes.  Instead of being led by one administrator, her duties (at her request) are being divided and expanded so that Lady-Links will be led by a group of coordinators.  The program will remain the same…friends visiting friends…but will be able to include more dear friends with more teams of Lady-Links to make the visits.  The success of Lady-Links and the growth of our community have necessitated change, and we think a leadership model with coordinators rather than one person is a perfect solution for going forward.  We are in the process of successfully filling those coordinator positions.

We have coordinators for crafts and birthdays.

Coordinators for planning events,  identifying new dear friends and scheduling visits.

We even have an information coordinator to keep our program up to date and moving forward.

With a financial coordinator and a recruiting/training coordinator added to our leadership team, we are looking forward to a greater outreach than ever before. We only have one position to fill:  Team Coordinator.

“Friends visiting friends” with lots of love and laughter to share….that’s what defined our Lady-Links program in the beginning and will continue to do so in the future.

 

 

 

 

Getting ready for fall activities is always fun.  Even though the temperatures are only slightly less than the triple digit mark, fall is in the air….at least in our minds anyway!

Recently the Lady-Links met to make fall crafts to send to our dear friends in our continuing care facility.  These colorful door hangers are sure to bring joy to those who receive them.

New this year are fall-themed cards to color.  Some we color ourselves, but most of them will be colored at visits with our dear friends.  There’s something about coloring that is so much fun!

Working together on fall crafts is sure to inspire conversation about memories of  visiting pumpkin patches, hay rides, playing in the leaves, football games and bonfires.  We always enjoy our fall visits with our dear friends and the special memories that are shared.

Happy Fall Y’all!

Planning is important if a a goal is to be accomplished.  But who says planning can’t be fun?  The Lady-Links decided to add “something” to a recent planning session…Hot Fudge Sundaes!  Planning plus hot fudge plus ice cream equals success…an afternoon of deliciousness and a feeling of mission accomplished! That’s what we call success!

 

Choosing crafts and activities for the fall….

Establishing goals for expanding our program…

And lots of love and laughter shared…

A winning combination…Lady-Links plus ice cream, almonds, whipped cream, cherries and a made-from-scratch hot fudge sauce!

Planning plus fun!  Now that’s something to plan for again!

Being kind to one another is an important virtue that the Lady-Links exemplify each time they connect with their dear friends, those ladies in our retirement community in various stages of cognitive decline. Whether it is through a smile, a gentle hug, an encouraging word, or simply spending time together, kindness is shown in many ways as each Lady-Link reaches out to her dear friend.

Kindness can impact someone’s life in ways that are meaningful, even if the results aren’t immediately obvious.  The Lady-Links are told by the spouses and/or the adult children of their dear friends how much their kindness means to their loved one in terms of improving feelings of self-worth that is seen long after the visit ends.

In the world of cognitive decline where uncertainty begins to infiltrate the minds and hearts of our dear friends, a little kindness goes a long way… and that’s one thing of which you can be certain…kindness matters!

 

Recently, two of our Lady-Links received their pins.  When we have a pinning ceremony, we are reminded of the commitment to show that we care that each Lady-Link makes when she becomes a part of our program.  The pin says it all….Lady-Links Care….and we do it by linking with our dear friends in love.

To receive a pin, a Lady-Link must have completed the required training and been an active part of our program for at least six months. These two ladies have been active much longer than six months but, due to COVID regulations on event group sizes in our community, this pinning ceremony was delayed for a while.  It is with pleasure that we officially welcome them into our program which makes friendship visits to those ladies in our community who are in various stages of cognitive decline, engaging them in activities they enjoy and in which they can successfully participate.

During COVID when visits to our dear friends were temporarily restricted, we established a method of staying linked through love…we made crafts and cards to send to them.

Each Lady-Link remains committed to the idea that those with dementia or other types of cognitive decline deserve to feel valued and appreciated. We do that with our in-person visits, and when that is not possible, we are creative in our thinking on how to reach them in other ways. The Lady-Links do care…finding ways to enrich the lives of others with love and laughter… and in so doing, our lives are enriched as well.