Dementia is caused by brain cells dieing, usually as a result of illness or disease, Altzheimers is one of the most common causes.. The effects can be devastating for the patient, but also to those around them, families and friends.
Rotary Club President Steve Holborough began the week Dementia Awareness Week by officially opening a mobile exhibition in Witney Market Square on Monday Morning,
“The Rotary Club Witney is proud to be the sponsor of this event. The Rotary Club and Witney Dementia Alliance worked closely together, under the leadership of Wendy Middleton and Chris Dyer, to provide a full week of activities and information events”. He went on to explain “Our aim is to raise awareness and make Witney a Dementia Friendly Town understanding the needs of Dementia sufferers, their families and helpers”.
With support from over a hundred shops who created blue window displays, Witney turned blue as the organisers encouraged people to become Dementia Friends.
With one in three people over 65 developing the illness, two-thirds of them women, the number of people affected is increasing as we all live longer.
The Alzheimer’s Society have devised the Dementia Friends programme, it’s biggest ever initiative, to change perceptions and transform the way the nation thinks, talks and acts about dementia.
To become a Dementia Friend involves a short training session to give a better understanding of dementia; shows how to act more sympathetically towards people with dementia in their communities and workplaces; and shows a committment to taking practical action to help people with dementia and contributing to a dementia friendly community.
actions range from telling friends about the Dementia Friends programme to visiting someone you know living with dementia, every action counts.
For more information about Witney Dementia Alliance or how to become a Dementia Friend contact Suzi Morgan 01993 894000 or email suzi.morgan@richmond-villages.com
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more A special day out for a group of pupils from Springfield School Witney
back An archive of some of the past news items