Dementia awareness event coming to Kildare
At the 2023 launch of The Alzheimer Society of Ireland's Kildare Day Care Centre in Kildangan – with Senator Fiona O’Loughlin.
THE ALZHEIMER Society of Ireland (ASI) Friends of ASI initiative is hosting a dementia inclusive community event for dementia awareness.
The event is in collaboration with Senator Fiona O’Loughlin, Co-Chair of the All Party Oireachtas Group on Dementia, and will take place at the Keadeen Hotel, Newbridge, County Kildare, on Thursday, 26 February at 7pm.
The event aims to increase understanding of dementia and encourage local people, businesses, and community services across Kildare to help build a more dementia inclusive community.
This marks the first Friends of ASI dementia inclusive community event in County Kildare, building on the strong network of active Friends of ASI communities already established nationwide.
The ASI provides ongoing support for people with dementia and their families in Kildare. In 2023, the organisation opened the Kildare Day Care Centre in Kildangan. The ASI offers a wide range of services across the county, including Day Care, Home Care, Social Clubs, and access to a Dementia Adviser.
Maureen Garry, who lives with Alzheimer’s and is a member of the Irish Dementia Working Group, a national advocacy group made up of people living with dementia, said: “As someone living with Alzheimer’s here in Kildare, I know how much it means to feel understood and supported in your own community – that’s why events like this matter so much.”
“Dementia can bring many challenges, but it doesn’t take away our need for connection or our ability to contribute. When local people, businesses, and services take small steps to be more aware and welcoming, it makes a huge difference to our confidence and our quality of life.”
Senator Fiona O’Loughlin, Co-Chair of the All Party Oireachtas Group on Dementia, said: “As Co-Chair of the All-Party Oireachtas Group on Dementia, I am proud to support this Friends of ASI event. This marks an important step in making Newbridge a dementia-friendly town.”
“This initiative shows how national leadership and local action can come together to support people living with dementia and their families. Creating a dementia-inclusive society is not just a health issue, it is a social and political responsibility. By working together across communities, services, and government, we can ensure that people living with dementia and their families are met with understanding, compassion, and meaningful support.”
This initiative is working alongside the HSE’s Dementia: Understand Together campaign. Dementia: Understand Together, a national partnership between The ASI, HSE, Age Friendly Ireland, Age & Opportunity, Dementia Services Information and Development Centre and Healthy Ireland, encourages community members and people living with dementia to make their communities more dementia-inclusive.
For more information about this event and the Friends of ASI dementia inclusive community initiative, please contact friendsofasi@alzheimer.ie or visit alzheimer.ie
