Diocesan News

Brooklyn Parish to Aid Alzheimer’s Project

Our Lady of Perpetual Help Basilica parish, Sunset Park, and the New York Memory Center are teaming up to assist Brooklyn residents who care for family members with Alzheimer’s disease.

An estimated 120,000 Brooklyn residents care for a family member with Alzheimer’s disease, and 70 percent of the diagnosed are cared for at home. The partnership is offering dementia education and support through a program called the “Memory Empowerment Project,” which aims to assist families with much needed information and connections to available resources.

The Memory Empowerment Project will offer workshops and memory screenings in both English and Spanish in March and April. All sessions are free and open to the public and will take place at the Basilica of Our Lady of Perpetual Help. The schedule is:

Healthy Mind and Active Brain Fitness: Sunday, March 15 (en Español) and Sunday, March 22 (in English), 11:45 a.m.-1:30 p.m., in Notre Dame Hall: 552 59th St. (wheelchair accessible).

Memory Screenings: Sunday, April 12 (en Español) and Sunday, April 19 (in English), Drop-in hours: 11:45 a.m. – 3 p.m., rectory office: 526 59th St.

The workshops on March 15 and 22 will include a presentation and time for questions.

On April 12 and 19, adults are invited to stop in for a Memory Screening, which consists of simple tests that take about eight minutes to complete and are administered by trained professionals from New York Memory Center.

The screening is a tool that may indicate if there are issues that should be discussed with an individual’s physician.

The Basilica of Our Lady of Perpetual Help is located at 526 59th St. in Brooklyn, near the N and R trains and the Belt Parkway/Gowanus Expressway. Light refreshments will be served.

For more information, call 718- 492-9200, or visit olphbkny.org.