17 August 2022 - CONNECT Whā (4)

Kia ora and welcome to the August Connect Newsletter

As I sit down to write this panui, I hear the headlines that New Zealand makes history with 20 gold medals at the Birmingham 2022 Commonwealth Games.  What an immense achievement for our team of five million. 

Reflecting on hard work and achievement, I would like to take a moment to recognise family carers, volunteers and people who work in the dementia sector – often undervalued and flying under the radar.  In this issue, we celebrate our unsung heroes: 

• Introducing our three new volunteer board members  
• Carers – see State of Caring report 
• People who donate and fundraise for us 

Also, we are delighted to be hosting the Symposium this year as a Covid-safe event at Te Papa, check out the details below.  

And much more… Happy Reading!  

Ngā mihi 

Anne Schumacher Chief Executive 

In just under six weeks, the Westpac Dementia Wellington "Lets Talk About Dementia" symposium will be underway at Te Papa on Thursday September 22. After three postponements, we are excited to be finally hosting this in-person event. From your feedback we know that the strength and success of the symposium lies in the networking opportunities and meeting people in person who are also immersed in dementia in one way or another.  The programme is varied and once again we have an excellent line up of speakers who will share their knowledge and expertise from a variety of perspectives – personal, academic, and professional. 

Click here to see the programme and details of pricing and registration – tickets are limited so don't delay. 

State of Caring Report

Carers NZ and the Carers Alliance have recently released the 2022 State of Caring report.  Carers were surveyed about their wellbeing, finances, and views about available support for their role. "The results are shocking," says Alliance Secretariat and Carers NZ CEO, Laurie Hilsgen. "People can't keep going like this without support themselves… Every family carer is a legend.." 

See the State of caring report here. 

Mate Wareware/Dementia Support Group

Maraeroa Marae Health Clinic in Porirua have started a Mate Wareware/Dementia Support Group to help families who are looking for support and information as they care for their loved ones.

These sessions are held once a month in the warmth of the marae-based Hauora (Health Clinic). The group is supported and facilitated by our Dementia Advisor, Debbie Mustard, alongside the Māori Community Whanau Ora registered nurse, Deb Carpenter. The next session is on Tuesday 23 August.

To register, or for more information, please contact Debbie Mustard by email, debbie@dementiawellington.org.nz or by phone, 020 4176 6629

New Phone Service

Our main contact number is still 04 972 2595 but in June we switched from using an answering service based in Auckland, to receiving calls in house.  There are two main changes with the new system: 

1. There is no longer a direct dial number available to the Kāpiti office.  If you need to contact the Kāpiti Dementia Advisor dial 04 972 2595 and select option two (or call her cell phone or email if you have those details).
2. If you prefer writing to phoning, email admin@dementiawellington.org.nz . Your message will be forwarded to the correct person and we will aim to respond within five working days. 

In addition to being more user friendly, we will also be making some cost savings with the new system. 😊 

Fundraising Heroes!

We think these people deserve a gold medal!

Susannah Hayes ran 10km in the Wellington Marathon in memory of her father in law, and raised a total of $520 for Dementia Wellington! 

Oli Keogh ran 10km every day for 100 days to raise over $10,000 for Dementia Wellington! This total was matched by Oli's employers at the Home Loan Shop!

Regular Donors

Thank you to the supporters who responded to our regular donor article in Connect Rua. 

We now have another three regular donors. Three doesn't sound a lot but the combined total of donations from these donors is $2,000 per year for Dementia Wellington. 

Our regular donors donate anything from $5 to $250 a month and include supporters paying weekly and fortnightly amounts. 

Internet banking is the best way to set up a regular donation and Dementia Wellington will send you an annual receipt at the end of the tax year.  

If you would like to become a regular donor, email Hannah donations@dementiawellington.org.nz  and she can talk you through the process.  

Click here for information on how to make a donation. Every donation and bequest we receive is not only a gesture of support, but also a lifeline for our organisation and the people we support.

Research - Dementia and Sleep

Rosie Gibson has been undertaking research concerning sleep with ageing, dementia, and caregiving over the last ten years. This has involved studies talking to families living with dementia, analysing data in large-scale studies, and trialling strategies to improve sleep.

To read some key findings of her work click here. 

To find out more about the Dementia sleep & Wellbeing Study see here.

Dr Rosie Gibson  is a Senior Lecturer at Massey University where she conducts research concerning  sleep with aging and dementia.  For more information on sleep see our April Newsletter and  The Australian Sleep Health Foundation 

New Board Members

Recently 3 new people joined our board, we are pleased to introduce Rachel, Maarten, and Edwin. 

Rachel Houlbrooke grew up in the Wairarapa and has lived in Lower Hutt and worked in Wellington for the last 20 years.  Rachel has a range of Government experience.  Rachel's partner was diagnosed with early stage dementia in 2021 and they have been on a journey of discovery and adjustment since then.  Through their engagement with Dementia Wellington over the last year Rachel became interested in contributing to the Board. 

My name is Maarten Quivooy,  and until recently I was the General Manager for Regulatory Services in the Department of Internal Affairs The greater part of my working life however was spent in the health and statutory social services.  I am delighted to join the board of Dementia Wellington as I have personal experience– my mother had dementia before she passed away.  I think dementia is a silent epidemic in Aotearoa and the services that Dementia Wellington provides are desperately needed.  I see my role on the board as doing the best possible job we can to enable Dementia Wellington to provide much needed support to whanau experiencing dementia.   

Hi, I'm Edwin Chan. I am currently a Senior Corporate Finance Specialist at Z Energy, and my background/area of expertise is in accounting and finance. I was born and raised in Wellington, having also lived overseas in Melbourne and London. 

I am really excited to be joining the Dementia Wellington Board. My grandma passed away from dementia seven years ago, so I am familiar with the devastating impact which dementia has both on an individual and also their family members. As a result, I am passionate about making a positive contribution towards an organisation which is doing great things in our community and supporting a cause that is close to heart.  

What's Coming Up

Click through to our What's on in August, September and October  plan to see the dates of our upcoming activities. You can copy the relevant dates into your calendars or diaries and see what's coming up in other areas too. We try to make sure this is always up-to-date and current but with uncertainty around Covid things can change rapidly. Our Dementia Advisors will always try to let you know if anything changes but please contact them by email or phone if you're unsure.  

Our updated service booklet is now available. In this booklet you will find full details of all our services and support groups. Please feel free to share this with neighbours and friends who might find it helpful and contact us if you would like to get a printed copy.  

Are you able to support people affected by dementia in Wellington? 

Would you like to support our work?

Click here to donate
Donations of $5 or more are tax-deductible

DIRECT into our bank account

Dementia Wellington Charitable Trust ASB 12-3142-0258625-50 
Our GST number is 127-923-906.

Dementia Wellington is a registered charity (CC56108) and an affiliate of Dementia NZ.

www.dementiawellington.org.nz

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Dementia Wellington thanks the following organisations for their support