“Individuals living with dementia are the ones who have the most authentic narrative around it.” This is the simple yet powerful message that Marigrace Becker, University of Washington Memory and Brain Wellness Center Manager of Community Education, conveys about a unique grassroots movement in the Seattle area known by the fitting moniker of “Momentia.”
Formed as a coalition of “community partners,” Momentia’s purpose is to empower people with memory loss and their care partners to remain connected and active in the community. Becker, who is one of its founding allies and wrote several blog posts on Momentia for ChangingAging, notes that central to the movement’s philosophy is its positive perspective on dementia and a collective determination “to transform what it means to live with dementia in the community—thus changing the story from one of despair to one of hope.”
The focus on inclusivity and its affirmative outlook hold strong appeal for Mary Firebaugh, who was diagnosed with mild cognitive impairment two years ago. Before Momentia, Firebaugh says she was involved in other dementia-friendly activities that typically included only people with memory loss and their care partners. “No one else was invited to join the activities,” she says. “It made me aware that Momentia was more positive and inclusive of both people with memory loss as well as the community as a whole; they have a new way of viewing activities for people with memory loss.”
Firebaugh now participates in a range of Momentia activities—the drumming circle and folk dancing are “wonderful,” she says. “So much of it includes activity and music and fun, and you don’t have to have a particular skill to enjoy it,” she adds. “I’ve also done some of the arts activities, which are great, and I like the walks as well.”
The organized walks, which take participants to different parts of Seattle, are usually preceded by social activities that “seem to work well and help people to get to know each other and relax and have fun,” Firebaugh says.
Camp Momentia, an annual day-long event that includes nature tours, a barbeque, sing-alongs, and a campfire, is a favorite among participants, and was especially enjoyable for Firebaugh.
“The word Momentia, to me, is so much more celebratory and friendly,” says Firebaugh, adding that the “moment” in Momentia “emphasizes that we can celebrate the moment and live in the moment—it feels like an explosion of energy.”
Founded about 4 years ago, Momentia appears to be running on its own steam, with the help of about a dozen committed and dedicated individuals, Becker says.
So what is it about Seattle that makes it so community-friendly? “We tend to be a little bit more non-bureaucratic in nature and more inclusive and also more grassroots oriented,” Becker adds.
Whatever the secret sauce is—maybe it’s the coffee—it’s working for Momentia. The Momentia website, which was designed by people living with dementia in partnership with local web designers, includes: a calendar of events, meetings, and gatherings facilitated by nearly two dozen local organizations; a page that describes, step-by-step, how to create an activity; among other things, are touted by participants as a very user-friendly site.
In the works are some new activities, Becker notes. One of which is the “Our Time Has Come” workshop series. This spring individuals will come together to design a community activism project. “We want to enable persons living with memory loss to share their perspectives on developing new programs that would be interesting to them,” says Becker.
Follow Momentia on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/MomentiaSeattle/
This sounds like such a great program. I wish there would have been something like this when my grandparents had gone through this. It was a very lonely and sad time and this seems to bring so much joy.
Far too often, I feel that organizations that try to make a safe space for individuals with cognitive impairment end up creating an environment that isn’t very “inclusive” of others such as the one mentioned by Firebaugh in the article. I love the fact that Momentia is making it their goal to get everyone involved in their activities. By involving those with AND without dementia, it provides a feeling of togetherness and allows those with dementia to feel less like secluded from others. Not only do I think that this is helpful to the dementia community, but to the community as a whole. While those with dementia are partaking in activities such as music, they are also able to be a part of their entire community again. At the same time, this teaches the rest of the community to be more inclusive in the activities that they take part in during the course of everyday life. Overall, Momentia is doing something great, and I hope that it influences other communities to create an inclusive area to be shared by all.
I love that Momentia is working to not only create activities for those with dementia and their caregivers but also getting the whole community involved. I think it is great to connect the community and not separate people based on their illness. I like that the program focuses on a range of activities so that everyone can have something they enjoy. This seems like a really great program that could be modified to work for any community. I especially like that they are starting a new workshop where those with dementia can help decide what activities to do. This program is empowering those who are usually put off to the side and isolated while working to bring the entire community together. I would love to see a program like this implemented in Evansville or another community near mine. From personal experience, I know that if isolated people with dementia can become extremely sad and start to lose interest in activities. This program is one way to keep them going and help others to better understand dementia.
I think this is an amazing program! Having dementia shouldn’t have to mean the end. This is a great way to look at it from a different persepective. They are still people. This program helps lift people up and comfort them. Some people may feel too nervous or shy to talk about their dementia. This is a way people can be vulnerable together and not feel anxious or scared to.
Momentia is such a beautiful program! By including the community and not limiting activities to PLWD and their caregivers/loved ones, the stigmas and exclusion begins to diminish. The emphasis on living in the moment is so critical, especially when considering that most people look at dementia as a big-picture problem. This allows people to view it as a collection of small, meaningful moments, and this movement is truly inspiring!
Momentia is such a positive title to such a meaningful organization for people with dementia and other cognitive impairments. It seems that nursing homes and other organizations that provide care for older adults never focus on coming up with such positive and uplifting terms to use within their buildings. One of the women involved in Momentia seemed to feel such gratitude just with the name, and that is something that needs to be utilized everywhere. Also, having activities available for people with all ages and abilities makes people with dementia feel so much more worth. Nursing homes today typically only have people of the same abilities interacting with each other; however, opening these activities up to a more broad selection of people could also really help to make them feel more valuable as a person.