The Greenwood Senior Center, 525 N. 85th St., continues to expand its services for those dealing with memory loss, including a new four-week series and a documentary screening.

“Re-ignite the Mind with Improvisation and Play” runs from 1-2 p.m. on Wednesdays, from June 12 – July 3. Cost is $10 for PNA Members, $15 for non-members for the series. There is no charge for care partners. Call 206-297-0875 to register.

This four week class uses improvisation and theatre games to tap into the creative abilities of individuals experiencing early stage memory loss (ESML) and their care partners. Improv participants engage fully in the present, making improvisation a perfect theatre class for students living with memory loss. There is no memory requirement, just a delight of participating in a creative experience that releases the imagination while giving a sense of accomplishment, self-confidence and social enrichment. The class, taught by theatre professionals from Taproot Theatre, promises an hour where participants find success as they learn new things, interact socially and live creatively in the moment.

Care partners are encouraged to attend, but it’s not mandatory, as this class can add a wonderful new dimension to daily life. This program is subsidized by the Washington Health Foundation.

The newly-released documentary “The Penelope Project” will be screened at the GSC at 4 p.m. on Wednesday, June 19, as a benefit for creative programming for people living with dementia. The event starts at 4 p.m. with a “happy half-hour,” followed by the one-hour movie at 4:30 p.m. and a discussion with experts in our community on creative engagement in aging services.

Cost is $10; all proceeds will benefit the Greenwood Senior Center and Elderwise. Make a reservation online, or call 206-297-0875.

What is the Penelope Project? Using the story of Penelope from Homer’s Odyssey, a team of staff, residents, artists, and students engaged an entire long term care community in Wisconsin in creativity and learning. Everyone was welcome. Discussion groups, movement exercises, visual art, stories, and music all emerged from this multi-year project that culminated in the performance of FINDING PENELOPE, a professionally-produced play staged inside the care facility. Over 400 people attended the performances. Here is a link to a small clip from the film.

There is work being done in the greater Seattle community to bring a bold, optimistic, innovative and creative approach and vision to programs for people living with dementia and other chronic diseases in and out of long term care facilities. This documentary will highlight this exceptional experiment and be an inspiration for more opportunity and collaborations.

The Greenwood Senior Center is a program of the Phinney Neighborhood Association and in the last three years has created and added creative programming for people living with dementia. Elderwise is a daily program that recognizes and nurtures the value and wholeness of older adults, regardless of their cognitive or physical ability, and using art techniques meets their need to experience life deeply in the present.

The Greenwood Senior Center is hosting an open house for The Gathering Place, a weekly afternoon program for those living with early stage memory loss (ESML).

The open house is from 3:30-5 p.m. next Wednesday, April 10, at the Senior Center, 525 N. 85th St. It is for memory loss professionals, individuals diagnosed with an early stage memory loss, and family caregivers.

The Gathering Place is a warm, inviting community for those diagnosed with ESML. Meeting every Thursday from 1 – 4 PM, the program includes activities that build on strengths and engage mind and body. The afternoon begins with a time of sharing and updates from the week. Next participants review their homework, then spend a half hour exercising through yoga, qi gong or line dancing. Participants then enjoy refreshments and informal discussion. The day concludes with creative exploration via visual arts, theatre, improvisation, poetry or music and cognitive stimulation such as games, puzzles or other activities to engage the mind.

Participants form a community that offers structure, meaning and purpose to their lives.

This program, developed by the GSC’s social worker Carin Mack, MSW and Mari Becker, MSW, has been running for two years. Screening with Carin Mack is required before participation.

For further information call 206-297-0875.

The monthly Alzheimer’s Café, for people with memory loss and their caregivers, is moving from Mae’s Café to Ampersand Pantry and Café, 424 N. 85th St., starting on Tuesday, Feb. 12. The café is from 3:30- 5 p.m. on the second Tuesday of every month.

Sponsored by the Greenwood Senior Center, it’s a time for those suffering from memory loss to get out and socialize in a safe environment, with no judgment or expectations. There is no cost other than your food and drink.

Parking is available at the Greenwood Senior Center across the street, or at the Bank of America lot just west of the café.

For more information about the Alzheimer’s Café, call Carin Mack at 206-297-0875.

The Greenwood Senior Center, 525 N. 85th St., is now offering two new programs for those affected by memory loss, including caregivers.

The Gathering Place is an expansion of the senior center’s monthly support groups for those living with Early Stage Memory Loss (ESML).

The Gathering Place, held from 1 – 4 p.m. every Thursday afternoon, provides stimulating activities and discussion in a small group format. Participants build on their strengths, by engaging in mental and physical activities, learning coping strategies while developing meaningful relationships.

Following well-established guidelines used in ESML programs across the nation, and facilitated by an MSW graduate, The Gathering Place incorporates problem solving and discussion, creative arts, exercise, intellectual stimulation, and refreshments. Throughout the day, participants may be found reading a play from the local Taproot Theatre, baking muffins, writing poetry, doing yoga, offering each other stress management tips, or playing games that encourage brain health.

Benefits from these kinds of programs include increased knowledge of how to cope with ESML, improved mood, enhanced social connections, and increased sense of structure and purpose.

The Gathering Place costs $35 per day. Scholarships are available.

The Alzheimer Café is a special opportunity for those living with Alzheimer’s to have a meal together once a month. It will be held once a month at Mae’s Phinney Ridge Café, 6412 Phinney Ave. N. This will be the second Alzheimer’s Café in the U.S.

Modeled after a movement in Europe of social gatherings for people with Alzheimer and their care partners, the Alzheimer Cafe provides an opportunity to get out and socialize in a safe environment. “Safe in the way that people can be themselves with no judgment and no expectations,” said Jytte Lokvig, who has created the first café in the US in Santa Fe, New Mexico.

Our neighborhood café will have its first gathering on Tuesday, August 9 from 3:30 – 5 PM and Mae’s fabulous ice cream will make this first gathering an ice cream social.

To learn more about The Gathering Place or the Alzheimer Café, or to make a pre-registration appointment, call Greenwood Senior Center social worker Carin Mack, MSW, at (206) 297-0875 or (206) 230-0166.