FOR A GOOD CAUSE -- Images of the past

Amy R. Spurgeon

Struggle. Humiliation. Isolation. Shame. Frustration. Communication.

Art?

All of these influenced Newport Beach resident and volunteer Selly Jenny

when she developed a painting program called Memories in the Making for

Alzheimer’s patients and their caregivers more than 15 years ago.

“I started this because the world did not understand Alzheimer’s

patients,” said 72-year-old Jenny, whose mother, Mela Webber, died in

1985 of complications from the disease.

Webber lived out her days under constant supervision and spent much time

pacing and wandering around a nursing facility. Her dementia ultimately

robbed her from having any recognition of her daughter. The elderly woman

often felt depressed for not recognizing Jenny and scolded herself for

not being nicer to the “stranger.”

“Nobody at that point had any specific coping techniques with Alzheimer’s

patients,” Jenny said. “The best thing in those days was for me not to

come visit. That way, she didn’t grow upset.”

In 1985, frustrated by the way most Alzheimer’s patients were regarded,

Jenny drew from an artistic background to develop a nonverbal means of

communication that restored dignity to the afflicted.

Facilitators play a key role in the Memories in the Making program

through positive interaction and feedback with patients. Facilitators use

biographical facts to stir emotions in patients, who then create an image

on canvas. Facilitators may also use the power of smell to spark a memory

by spraying florals or spices near a participant.

“It is the validation of the individual by the art facilitator that

occurs over a blank piece of paper as it becomes a painting,” said Linda

Scheck, executive director of the Alzheimer’s Association of Orange

County. “It is the process that is the important part of Memories in the

Making.”The process and the product have helped the program become a

success, Jenny said.

Each year, a calendar comprising the artwork is made available for sale

to the public to help raise public awareness about Alzheimer’s disease. A

special Memories in the Making millennium edition information resource

and engagement calendar is currently available through the Orange County

Chapter.

Jenny and a handful of others are credited with the formation of the

Alzheimer’s Association Orange County Chapter. It is one of 200 chapters

nationwide that offers free services to the community, including

counseling, support, education, visiting volunteers, help line

consultation and guidance for families through the progression of the

disease.

“She has been a pioneer,” Scheck said of Jenny. “She is someone who has

done everything from rolling up her sleeves and placing centerpieces on

tables at fund-raising galas, to serving on the board of directors.”

Alzheimer’s disease is a progressive, degenerative disease that attacks

the brain, resulting in impaired memory, thinking and behavior. The

disease was first recognized in 1907 by Alois Alzheimer when he

discovered the hallmark plaques and tangles in the brain cells of a woman

who suffered from dementia.

Today, approximately 50,000 people in Orange County suffer from the

disease, according to Scheck.

Success from the Memories in the Making program has generated national

and international attention. Jenny was handpicked to speak at the World

Alzheimer’s Congress 2000 conference in Washington, D.C. in July. She

will be sharing success stories from her art program with physicians and

caregivers from around the world.

Despite the accolades and numerous awards the Alzheimer’s Association has

bestowed upon her, Jenny credits the patients and the life lessons they

have taught her.

“I have gotten so much back. It was the right time in my life to dedicate

myself to something I believed in,” Jenny said. “It is all about how

important communication is to the human being.”

FYI

MEMORIES

The Alzheimer’s Association of Orange County will present “An Evening of

Memories,” a gala fund-raising dinner and art auction that will honor

Maureen Reagan for her role as a national spokesperson for the

Alzheimer’s Association, at 6:30 p.m. Saturday at the Four Seasons Hotel

in Newport Beach.