stillwell

Adventures in Caregiving Connections, the free local program I work for which offers support to family caregivers, is looking for volunteers interested in spending a few hours a week helping local families cope with Alzheimer’s disease or other dementia. Training will be provided by the Alzheimer’s Association and our Connections staff. Connections volunteers will...
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The Rappahannock Planning Commission's consideration of an application for a tourist-home permit in Old Hollow had to wait, due to lack of a quorum. Instead, the members present heard more comments on the county’s upcoming revision of its comprehensive plan.
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When, without warning, the derecho knocked out most of the electrical power in Rappahannock and our neighboring counties, no one was more vulnerable than the many older couples where one spouse is caring for another with Alzheimer’s disease.
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When Gladys Virginia Harrison went to Scrabble School as a little girl, she and her sister Louise walked to the school from their family farm in Woodville every day after milking the cows in the morning. Scrabble School is working now to ensure those days are not forgotten.
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When I see the challenges faced at home by members of our Rappahannock County family caregiver support group or by families I visit as part of Connections, the free in-home support program for families coping with dementia, I am reminded again and again how important it is to have skilled, caring local people committed to...
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Some months ago I wrote here in the Rappahannock News about an innovative, in-home program for caregivers of family members with Alzheimer’s disease or other forms of dementia. Today I would like to update the community on the great success the program has experienced and urge everyone who is eligible to enroll in the...
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Family caregiving is tough work, and caring for someone with dementia involves its own special frustrations. Too often, people with dementia spend their waking hours in a passive fog; too often, the caregiver is overworked and frustrated. For both the person with dementia and the caregiver, life can become deeply discouraging. I know from...
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Two men I knew died recently within days of each other after long struggles with two different paralyzing and fatal diseases. Thanks to the loving dedication and painstaking hard work of the women who were their life partners, each man was able to live at home throughout his illness. Each died peacefully in his...
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