Filmmaker to discuss Alzheimer’s in Vernon Hills

Submitted by Forte Public Relations

Autumn Leaves of Vernon Hills is inviting the public to attend a moving, inspirational and meaningful event.

Award-winning filmmaker Jim Vanden Bosch, an expert on aging, will show the public how to use music, art and creativity to engage loved ones with dementia or Alzheimer’s disease and help stimulate cognitive function.

Vanden Bosch will also focus on ways to treat loved ones with dignity, how to maintain a helping relationship and how to restore a sense of hope.

Autumn Leaves of Vernon Hills invited Vanden Bosch to the community to share his message with the public. Three sessions will take place Thursday, Nov. 1, starting at 10 a.m. The event includes a free buffet lunch.

“Our goal is to help people in the community realize they are not alone,” said Brad Jacobsen, regional sales director, Constant Care Family Management, the property management company for Autumn Leaves memory care communities.

“We want families to know that hundreds of other people are in the same desperate situation, and there is support for them.”

Vanden Bosch has been creating films on various topics involving aging for three decades. At this event, he will give a PowerPoint presentation that involves clips from 15 different films. His goal is to show the public that there are ways to successfully cope with Alzheimer’s disease and help loved ones tap into their creative side.

He will also show part of his film, “Into The Other Lane: Driving and Dementia.” The film delves into a common source of struggle for families and caregivers: how to discuss when it is time for a loved one to stop driving and how to deal with the loss of independence.

Vanden Bosch will also show part of a film based on the book by Joanne Koenig Coste, “Learning to Speak Alzheimer’s.”

“Alzheimer’s is not a black and white disease, and there are positive ways to work with loved ones,” Vanden Bosch said.

“I want to challenge the stereotypes out there that relate to people living with Alzheimer’s. Society seems to consider them to be lost souls, and I believe quite the opposite. There are ways to reach them and bring out their personalities despite the Alzheimer’s.”

The staff at Autumn Leaves of Vernon Hills looks forward to the opportunity to share Vanden Bosch’s message and to see the films themselves.

“Part of my role is to be an advocate for adult children who need information,” said Carol Geimer, community relations director for Autumn Leaves of Vernon Hills.

“I hope this event provides a starting point for families, and a sense that they are not alone.”

Schedule of events:

Ÿ 10-10:30 a.m.: Registration for door prizes and light refreshments.

Ÿ 10:30 a.m. to noon: Session One: “Dancing the Dance of Belonging with Persons Who Have a Dementia Disability” by Jim Vanden Bosch, followed by Q-and-A.

Ÿ Noon to 12:45 p.m. Free buffet lunch.

Ÿ 1-2 p.m. Session Two: Presentation of short videos about driving with dementia.

Ÿ 2-3 p.m. Session Three: Video based on “Learning to Speak Alzheimer’s” by Joanne Koenig Coste.

To RSVP or for more information, call Carol Geimer at (847) 996-1000. You can find some of the film clips Vanden Bosch will discuss at www.videocaregiving.org.

For information on Autumn Leaves of Vernon Hills, visit AutumnLeaves.com or call (847) 996-1000.

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