Event Type : Coffee Talk

Dementia affects every community and is a significant burden on the mental and physical health of family caregivers. There is still a significant misunderstanding and lack of knowledge about the disease, resulting in stigma and isolation for those living with dementia and their caregivers. The Dementia Friends Indiana initiative, an outreach of Dementia Friendly America, seeks to educate communities about dementia, break down the stigma surrounding dementia, and implement practical changes that make life easier to navigate for those with dementia and their loved ones. Learn how you can make a positive difference in the lives of people living with dementia through increased awareness and support.

Learning Objectives

1. Describe dementia and understand the most common types
2. State five key messages about dementia
3. Explain an approach to effectively communicate with a person with dementia

This program is ideal for: anyone interested in making their community a more inclusive, age-friendly place to live.

About Our Facilitator

Holly Neal is the Caregiver Programs Coordinator for LifeStream Services and the Dementia Friendly Liaison for East Central Indiana. Hollyn has a bachelor’s degree in Health Education and Promotion from Ball State University, and is a Certified Health Education Specialist (CHES). Hollyn is especially passionate about caregiver health and well-being, and educating the community on dementia.

Since February 2022, Hollyn has led 25 Dementia Friends sessions and made 230 Dementia Friends throughout East Central Indiana. Hollyn is also a Dementia Friends Indiana Master Champion, and has trained 3 new champions to lead these information sessions in their own communities.

Setting aside at least one minute each day with the intention of mindfulness makes all the difference in creating space, focus, and calm in your mind and everyday life. Thoughts, actions and reactions are all connected in how in tuned one is to themselves, their surroundings, and present to daily activities. Practicing mindfulness allows one to become more aware and brings peace of mind. Come learn and experience ‘A Mindful Minute’ with me.

Learning Objectives

1. Discover the power of the present moment.
2. Understand what mindfulness is all about and how it relates to meditation.
3. Learn a short mindfulness practice to be able to incorporate into everyday life.

This program is ideal for: anyone interested in increasing their mindfulness

About Our Facilitator

Nichole Linebaugh is passionate about safety and health. She has been working in the occupational safety and health field for just over 10 years and currently holding the Associate Safety Professional (ASP) designation with the Bureau of Certified Safety Professionals and working at FCC (Indiana) in Portland, IN. Nichole is also a yoga practitioner and a 500-hour yoga teacher. She is always continuing to learn and grow in health and wellness and works with private yoga clients and building her business Nurturing Rose Yoga. She helps to guide individuals find the right tools to work through everyday stress and anxiety. With working in the safety and health field, Nichole continues to apply yoga techniques and principles to work through everyday stress and stress at work.

Nichole is currently living in Union City, IN with her family and loves to spend time with them and be out in nature.

Most people spend a good part of their day communicating with others. Generally, motivation is dependent on communication. We are adequate talkers, but inadequate listeners. Together we discuss four levels of listening and how listening impacts motivation.

Learning Objectives

1. Develop the skill to listen to hear
2. Understand the connection between motivation and listening
3. Create a plan to apply listening, communicating, and understanding to your daily conversations

This program is ideal for: anyone interested in improving their listening skills

About Our Facilitator

Tisha Gierhart was hired as Shafer Leadership Academy’s first Program Director in January 2014. She is primarily responsible for all activities related to the development, delivery, and assessment of leadership programs presented by Shafer Leadership Academy. In this role, she focuses on building collaborative relationships with Shafer Leadership Academy’s participants and partners. (read more)