Susan Jackewicz Shares a Personal Story

The director of the Education Institute, JoAnn Westbrook, managed the memory care facility 10 years ago where my father lived for 2.5 years before passing away. He was a WWII veteran, a retired electrical engineer, and an intelligent man who was struck with vascular dementia after two open heart surgeries. After yet another cardiac episode and a stay in the hospital, we transferred him to Ms. Westbrook’s facility where he was, to put it kindly, challenging. JoAnn and her caring staff were able to “read” him, calm him, and direct him in ways I thought were short of miraculous. Because of their approach, we were able to greatly reduce the amount of his pharmaceutical help. From them I learned how to interact with my father and other memory-impaired residents, and was able to deal with the disease which seemed to make my father a different person. I also learned how to simultaneously retain respect and recognition for the person I’d always known. This newly-learned “skill” made a big difference in coping with the stress levels inherent in the situation for both my mother and myself. Because of this experience, I’d urge any caregiver who is new to or struggling with cognitive issues with their loved one to go to this seminar and really listen to what Ms. Snow (seminar listed below) has to say. She’s being brought to this community by someone who has a long history of involvement at the “pedal hits the metal” level and someone who’s made a difference in many families’ lives. I think this seminar will be one of substance and will be “immediately useful”.