LEWISTON — SeniorsPlus has been awarded an Administration for Community Living 2019 award of $693,362 for Alzheimer’s disease program initiatives.
The three-year grant is for the Dementia Capable Maine program, which will bolster capacities to support caregivers and people living with dementia. SeniorsPlus and key partners will work to expand the integration between Area Agencies on Aging — SeniorsPlus in the western Maine AAA — the primary health care system and community services in Maine. Project partners Eastern Area Agency on Aging, Maine Behavioral Healthcare, Maine Health, the University of Southern Maine and the Alzheimer’s Association will work with SeniorsPlus to improve and strengthen support and services delivered to people with dementia and their caregivers.
The program’s reach will extend to Penobscot, Piscataquis, Hancock and Washington counties, as well as Androscoggin, Oxford and Franklin counties, which are SeniorsPlus service areas.
SeniorsPlus’s grant was one of 13 cooperative agreements awarded for a total of $10,370,642.The awardees are in 11 states across the nation.
“We are very excited about the innovative programming we will be launching and making accessible to families and individuals dealing with Alzheimer’s Disease,” said Betsy Sawyer-Manter, president and CEO of SeniorsPlus. “A grant award of this size will allow us to delve into programming that before we only dreamed of, including music and memory therapy.”
The overall program goal of SeniorsPlus is to assist older people and adults with disabilities in its tri-county area to remain safely at home for as long as possible. It serves more than 17,000 individuals annually.
