News Photo by Darby Hinkley A group of seniors and their caregivers learn some creative ways to express themselves at Wednesday’s Memory Cafe at the Alpena Senior Citizens Center, led by Instructor Justin Christensen-Cooper, executive director of Art in the Loft.

ALPENA — A group of about 15 people attended the first Memory Cafe held Wednesday at Alpena Senior Citizens Center.

The free event, designed for those dealing with dementia, and their caregivers, will be held at 1 p.m. on the second Wednesday of each month. Snacks and activities are planned for each session.

On Wednesday, attendees participated in an art class led by Justin Christensen-Cooper, executive director of Art in the Loft. He provided each participant with supplies to color a word of their choice that he had designed. An example is the word “brave.”

Attendees also heard from Alpena Police Chief Eric Hamp and Alpena Community Risk Reduction Captain Andy Marceau, talking about the importance of wearing a Miles for Memories tracking bracelet that stores medical and personal information so that it can be scanned and accessed as needed in a crisis or emergency. The bracelets store the information, including emergency contacts that need to be notified in case of an incident.

“It’s a wonderful opportunity for the community,” Hamp said of the Miles for Memories bracelets. “The senior center noticed that there was a gap in services for those with cognitive impairment. So, thankfully, they were able to write a grant and get the funds to put this team together.”

He’s talking about the partnership between the senior center and local law enforcement and health and safety officials, referred to as “The DREAM Team.” DREAM stands for Dementia, Resources, Education, Advocacy, and Mentorship.

Hamp said having the wristbands available to the public is the first step to preventing possible incidents, such as someone walking away from home and then not being aware of their location. If that occurs, and the person is wearing a Miles of Memories bracelet, anyone with a smartphone can scan it and find out who their emergency contact is, and notify them immediately.

“There is help for those with cognitive impairment,” Hamp added. “We know what to look for, and we can scan the QR code, and it will give us helpful emergency contact information for that individual that needs services.”

Hamp said the DREAM Team is developing a flyer for first responders to have on hand to let people know that the senior center is offering services for those with dementia and their caregivers, so they are aware of the support available to them.

“It’s an absolutely wonderful program, and there’s a definite need in the community for it,” Hamp said, adding that dementia-related incidents are “not something that we deal with a lot, but one time is too many … This just puts more pieces in place to hopefully have a successful resolution.”