Both the Wesleyan Methodist Church and Wesleyan Village, located at 22319 Cortez Blvd. in Brooksville have been certified Dementia Friendly by Coping with Dementia LLC, an Inverness-based company that provides training for families caring for friends and loved ones living with Alzheimer’s Disease and other forms of dementia.  Approximately forty residents of the Village and members of the church congregation attended training on August 6, 2018, to earn the certification.

It is estimated that Hernando county has more than 6,800 individuals living with dementia.  Because of the nature of the disease, often requiring around-the-clock care, many of these individuals need more than one caregiver, resulting in a significant impact on county and individual family resources.

Coping with Dementia President Debbie Selsavage states, “Because 80 percent of families cannot afford professional care, it is important for private-sector organizations to offer as much support as possible.  Churches like Wesleyan Methodist Church are especially important because they already have a mission of compassionate community outreach in place.”

Selsavage is also president of the board of directors of the Alzheimer’s Family Organization, a Spring Hill-based regional non-profit charity that supports caregivers in eight west-central Florida counties, including Hernando County.

Dementia awareness and care training is provided free of charge by both the Alzheimer’s Family Organization and Coping with Dementia LLC.  For more information, call 352-422-3663 or 352-616-0170.

Photo: Coping with Dementia President Debbie Selsavage presents Dementia Friendly Certification documents to Wesleyan Method Church representative Bonnie Sanford as trained members of the church and Village look on.