National Center for Creative Aging

NATIONAL CENTER FOR CREATIVE AGING FEATURES TIMESLIPS IN

“CREATIVITY MATTERS” SYMPOSIUM ON HEALTH, WELLNESS, AND THE ARTS

Washington, DC – March 16 2009 – National Center for Creative Aging (NCCA) will feature certification on the “The TimeSlips Creative Storytelling Project” as part of the “NCCA-MetLife Foundation Creativity Matters: Health, Wellness, and the Arts Symposium,” being held in Washington, D.C. on March 30, 31, April 1.

Anne Basting, Director of the Center on Age and Community at the University of Wisconsin and Founder and Director of TimeSlips said, “Storytelling is memory – just imagine the power of bringing storytelling into the hands of someone who thinks they’ve lost it. It brings real engagement back to people and places that assumed it was lost.”

The Monday, March 30 workshop will be led by Basting at IONA Senior Services. She will focus on how to use images to inspire people with dementia to tell creative stories. Participants will learn and practice key TimeSlips storytelling methods including echoing responses, selecting images, asking open-ended questions, engagingly retelling the story, and handling common communication challenges. Basting will also discuss how to share stories within one’s own community.

TimeSlips Creative Storytelling Project was founded by Basting in 1998. It is a one-of-a-kind program that encourages people with dementia to tell their stories by using images to trigger their imaginations. Participants will learn how to conduct a session which typically begins with a leader who asks a question about an image. The facilitator then puts all the responses together and weaves it into a story. Research shows that the TimeSlips program improves communication skills among people with dementia, builds teamwork between caregivers of people with dementia, and improves interactions between staff and residents with dementia.

For more information on registration, programming or membership, please contact the NCCA office at info@creativeaging.org or (202) 895-9456.

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The National Center for Creative Aging (NCCA) was founded in 2001 and is dedicated to fostering and understanding of the vital relationship between creative expression and healthy aging and to developing programs that build on this understanding. Based in Washington, DC, NCCA is a nonprofit with 2,500 members and is affiliated with The George Washington University. www.creativeaging.org

THE MUSEUM OF MODERN ART’S “MEET ME AT MOMA” PROGRAM FOR PEOPLE WITH ALZHEIMER’S AND OTHER DEMENTIA FEATURED IN NATIONAL CENTER FOR CREATIVE AGING’S “CREATIVITY MATTERS” SYMPOSIUM ON HEALTH, WELLNESS, AND THE ARTS

Washington, DC – March 23, 2009 – “Meet Me at MoMA,” will be featured at the “NCCA-MetLife Foundation Creativity Matters: Health, Wellness & the Arts Symposium” in Washington, D.C., which is being held on March 30, 31 and April 1. The program was developed by The Museum of Modern Art in New York and focuses on using art to promote dialogue among people with dementia and their caregivers.

Francesca Rosenberg, Director of Community and Access Programs, Museum of Modern Art, said, “We have seen through the Museum’s “Meet Me at MoMA” program how visual art offers people who have Alzheimer’s or other dementia an entry for communication and an opportunity for engagement, not only with art, but with their caregivers, loved ones, and society at large.”

The Tuesday, March 31 workshop at the Phillips Collection will feature a presentation by Rosenberg on the “The MoMA Alzheimer’s Project: Making Art Accessible to People with Dementia,” MoMA’s ongoing initiative to expand the “Meet Me at MoMA” program model to museums and healthcare facilities across the nation, made possible by a major grant from MetLife Foundation. She will discuss how to determine the best practices in creating, developing, and implementing art-looking gallery tours and related programming for individuals with Alzheimer’s disease and their caregivers in an art museum setting, in assisted living facilities or at home. Rosenberg will also address how to access resources and training in a museum-setting that meet the interests of local communities and how to reach out to communities to raise awareness of the benefits of providing art to individuals with Alzheimer’s and their caregivers.

The Wednesday, April 1 workshop will feature on-site training at the Kreeger Museum, led by Rosenberg , Amir Parsa, Laurel Humble, and Carrie McGee, all MoMA staff members. The training will focus on preparation, artwork selection, in-gallery facilitation and interaction, audience dynamic and evaluation. During the session participants will develop their own mini program.

For more information please contact the NCCA office at info@creativeaging.org or (202) 895-9456.

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The National Center for Creative Aging (NCCA) was founded in 2001 and is dedicated to fostering an understanding of the vital relationship between creative expression and healthy aging and to developing programs that build on this understanding. Based in Washington, DC, NCCA is a nonprofit with 2,500 members and is affiliated with The George Washington University. www.creativeaging.org

MetLife Foundation was established in 1976 by MetLife to carry on its long-standing tradition of corporate contributions and community involvement. The Foundation has been involved in a variety of aging-related initiatives addressing issues of caregiving, intergenerational activities, mental fitness, health and wellness programs and civic involvement. For more than 20 years, MetLife and MetLife Foundation have invested more than $17 million for Alzheimer's research and public information programs, including over $11.5 million through the Awards for Medical Research in Alzheimer’s Disease program. More information about the Foundation is available at www.metlife.org.

NATIONAL CENTER FOR CREATIVE AGING PRESENTS SYMPOSIUM HIGHLIGHTING BEST PRACTICES IN DEVELOPING CREATIVE PROGRAMS FOR PEOPLE WITH DEMENTIA

Washington, DC – March 25, 2009 – The National Center for Creative Aging (NCCA) will feature the “NCCA-MetLife Foundation Creativity Matters: Health, Wellness & the Arts Symposium,” highlighting a number of speakers discussing developing innovative programs for people with dementia and their caregivers on March 30, 31 and April 1.

Tuesday, March 31, Gene Cohen, Director of the Center on Aging, Health & Humanities at The George Washington University will present an overview of Alzheimer’s disease describing the nature of the disorder as well as the changes one observes during the course of the disorder at The Phillips Collection. He will also discuss a number of topics ranging from high tech medicine and molecular biology to innovations in behavioral and psychosocial science to the role of art in improving the quality of life of people with dementia.

Tuesday will also feature Dina Zempsky, Senior Coordinator, Story Corps Memory Loss Initiative who will discuss the StoryCorps Memory Loss Initiative, which aims to support and encourage people with dementia to share their stories. People with dementia are interviewed and each conversation is recorded onto a free CD to share with their family and friends, and is then archived in the Library of Congress.

Other keynote introducers and facilitators include Paula Terry, Director, Access Ability Office, National Endowment for the Arts; Marie Bernard, Deputy Director, National Institutes on Aging, National Institutes of Health; Janine Tursini, Executive Director, Arts for the Aging; Judy Diaz, Sr. Director, Brand Strategy, PBS; Marsha Semmel, Deputy Director for Museums and Deputy Director of Strategic Partnerships, Institute of Museum and Library Services; Susan Perlstein, Founder and Director of Educational Services, NCCA and Andrea Sherman, Master Teaching Artist and President of Transitional Keys. Anthony Hyatt, Master Teaching Artist, NCCA, Musician/Dancer, Arts for the Aging will also perform.

For more information please contact the NCCA office at info@creativeaging.org or (202) 895-9456. Scholarships and CEUs are available.

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