12th Year Winners of the Innovations in Alzheimer's Caregiving Award

SAN FRANCISCO, Jan. 6, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- In celebration of the 12th year of the Innovations in Alzheimer's Caregiving Award, The Rosalinde and Arthur Gilbert Foundation, the Helen Daniels Bader Fund, A Bader Philanthropy, and Family Caregiver Alliance are pleased to announce three winning organizations?each delivering a state-of-the-art program that addresses the needs of caregivers and those they care for with Alzheimer's disease or a related condition.

Each model program will receive $20,000 for their work in the following categories:

Creative Expression

• Giving Voice Initiative ? Erdina, Minnesota

Program: Giving Voice Chorus

Giving Voice Initiative (GVI) was formed in 2015 where people with Alzheimer's and other dementias and their caregivers form a chorus and perform for the community.  The chorus is based on the belief that creating music, i.e. singing together, is a gateway to demonstrating how to live well with dementia. Today over 200 members, most 65+ years, sing in three flagship choruses in Minnesota. GVI has inspired over 40 choruses across the US, Canada and Australia.

Creative Expression

• Sweet Readers, Inc. ? New York, New York

Program: Sweet Readers for Adults and their Care Partners

Founded in 2011, Sweet Readers pairs middle school students with adults living with dementia, and their caregiver, in an intimate group setting for life-affirming creative human engagement (reading, creating art, music, poetry and/or movement). Sweet Readers collaborates with a number of community organizations (e.g. Metropolitan Museum of Art, The Jewish Museum, The Nightingale Bamford School and Ramaz School) and works closely with Mount Sinai School of Medicine and private Geriatric Care Managers to engage participants, serving 785 adults annually. 

Diverse/Multicultural Communities

• Centro Tyrone Guzman ? Minneapolis, Minnesota

Program: Centro Wise Elders

Centro Tyrone Guzman is the oldest and largest Minneapolis-based multi-service Latine organization.  Their program, Centro Wise Elders, actively engages community members in sustaining an informed, safe, and respectful environment to support the health and well-being of Spanish speaking individuals living with Alzheimer's disease and other dementias, and their family, including low-income immigrant families. They have pioneered the adaptation of Alzheimer's programs and resources for use in the Latine community including, "House of Memories" dementia awareness training, Montessori-inspired tools and strategies, Respite Education and Support Tools (REST) in Spanish, and they serve as a cultural consultant for the Minnesota ACT Alzheimer's Initiative.

View detailed information on the winning programs.

Representatives of the winning organizations will receive their awards at a reception held during the upcoming Aging in America Conference in Atlanta, Georgia. The reception will take place on Wednesday, March 25, 2020, 6:30 to 8:30 p.m., at the Hyatt Regency Atlanta, in the Courtland Conference Room. The reception is open to the public.

The mission of The Rosalinde and Arthur Gilbert Foundation is to invest in programs that promote education, tolerance, social services, healthcare, and the arts. The Foundation builds on the ideals and pursuits of its founders, Rosalinde and Arthur Gilbert. In addition, the Foundation funds Arts Education and Culture in Los Angeles, Jewish programs in Los Angeles, and universities in California. In the area of Alzheimer's disease, The Rosalinde and Arthur Gilbert Foundation focuses its grant-making on the advancement of research by junior investigators in the United States and Israel and investments in Alzheimer's disease caregiving.

Milwaukee-based Bader Philanthropies, Inc. is a philanthropic leader in improving the quality of life of the diverse communities in which it works. Through the Helen Daniels Bader Fund and the Isabel and Alfred Bader Fund, the organization funds innovative projects and programs, convenes partners, and shares knowledge to affect emerging issues in key areas. Since its founding in 1992 as the Helen Bader Foundation, the organization has committed more than $275 million in grants and program-related investments, such as loans and equity investments that advance its charitable mission. Today, the Helen Daniels Bader Fund (HDBF) honors her interest in healthier older adults, as well as her passion for the arts and creativity. The HDBF works to further healthy aging in Wisconsin, particularly with respect to the impact of Alzheimer's disease, as well as efforts to address Alzheimer's in Israel. In Milwaukee, HDBF brings community arts to underserved audiences, while the Helen Bader Scholarship Fund helps keep Jewish day school education in reach for local families. 

Established in 1977, the Family Caregiver Alliance (FCA) supports and assists caregivers through education, services, research, and advocacy. FCA programs support and sustain the important work of families and friends caring for loved ones with chronic, disabling health conditions. In 2017, FCA launched CareJourney, a scalable online service able to deliver quality information, education, and services to a growing family caregiver population. The National Center on Caregiving, established at FCA in 2001, works to advance the development of high-quality cost-effective policies and programs for caregivers in every state of the country.

Contact: Albert Martinez, (415) 434-3388, ext. 315, or [email protected]

SOURCE Family Caregiver Alliance