New LIFE Memory Café opening in Orrville on March 25 at United Church of Christ

Wooster Daily Record
·2 min read

Families and loved ones living with memory loss will find a host of supportive resources when L.I.F.E., a Dementia Friendly Foundation opens its newest LIFE Memory Café at the Orrville United Church of Christ, 301 Main St.

The weekly cafés will be held 10 a.m.-2 p.m. every Monday beginning March 25. They are open to anyone living in Orrville and the surrounding Wayne County communities.

Due to support from community partners and the Wayne County Community Foundation, there is never a cost for participants and their care partners to attend. A complimentary lunch is provided.

Orrville is the seventh and newest location for LIFE Memory Cafés, joining other locations at churches in Wellington, Elyria, Amherst, Wooster, Avon Lake and North Ridgeville.

Racheal Braeunig, center, leads participants at the Wooster Memory Café through various exercises. Braeunig works with the Danbury Senior Living location in Wooster and helps out with the Memory Café regularly. A cafe will open in Orrville later this month.
Racheal Braeunig, center, leads participants at the Wooster Memory Café through various exercises. Braeunig works with the Danbury Senior Living location in Wooster and helps out with the Memory Café regularly. A cafe will open in Orrville later this month.

LIFE Memory Cafés improve quality of life by offering a social space where individuals with dementia and their care partners engage in art and music programs, pet therapy, physical exercise and other stimulating group activities.

The inaugural March 25 LIFE Memory Café will feature a creative art expression project, music, a special lunch and a physical exercise session. Care partners, who remain on the premises for the cafés along with their loved ones, will have opportunities to connect with others who understand their journey and benefit from on-site educational resources.

A Community Education Program will be offered 10 a.m.-2 p.m. Tuesday, March 19. A light lunch will be provided by West View Healthy Living. Attendees will learn about the Memory Café, memory loss and dementia and care giver stress, and have the opportunity to become a Dementia Friend.

“Having to drive any distance with someone with dementia can be a challenge,” said Chief Executive Officer Carole Klingler, BSN RN CDP. “We are so excited about this new location because we know we can serve and support so many more people.”

"Christ Church is excited to extend an extravagant welcome to the LIFE Memory Cafe," said the Rev. Brian Burke, interim minister at the church. "Being a resident of Lorain County where there are five LIFE Memory Cafes, I have seen the difference this program has made and know that what it offers is desperately needed by individuals living with dementia and the care partners alike. Christ Church is grateful for the opportunity to be a community partner as we seek to love our neighbor by embodying the Golden Rule to treat our neighbors as we would want to be treated. We strive to be a place where all God's children are welcome, no matter who they are or where they are on life's journey."

For more information or to register for the LIFE Memory Café, contact Klingler at 440-935-3506 or Carole@dflife.org.

This article originally appeared on The Daily Record: New LIFE Memory Café opening at Orrville United Church of Christ