As part of Te Wiki Kaumātua Seniors’ Week we’re hosting a special talk at Karori Library, Stories of Dementia. Join us on Saturday 7th October, 2-3pm as we’re joined by authors Kristen Phillips, Charity Norman, Pip Desmond and Anne Schumacher of Dementia Wellington. This talk is for anyone interested in learning more about dementia, dementia experiences and what steps to take if yourself or a loved one are affected.
Here we highlight the work of the speakers, all of whom have personal and/or professional experiences dealing with the differing journeys dementia can take, and the effects it has on carers and whānau.
Kristen Phillips
Kristen Phillips’ memoir Dad, You’ve Got Dementia is not about what is being lost on a daily basis but what there is still to find. It shows people living with dementia and their whānau that it’s possible to stay connected with those they love. You can watch our recent author interview where Kristen talks about writing the memoir here.
Kristen grew up in Te Awa Kairangi Lower Hutt and recently returned to Aotearoa after thirty years living in London. Kristen now works at Dementia Wellington.
Charity Norman
Charity Norman’s book Remember Me is a fictional story written after the loss of her mother to dementia. The story is centered around Emily Kirkland, who after years overseas returns to New Zealand to care for her father, Felix, who suffers from dementia. As his memory fades and his guard slips, she begins to understand him for the first time – and to glimpse shattering truths about his past.
Charity moved from the UK to Aotearoa New Zealand with her family in 2002, Remember Me is her seventh book to date.
Pip Desmond
Pip Desmond’s memoir Song for Rosaleen is both a celebration of her mother Rosaleen’s life and an intimate account of how their family coped with her diagnosis of dementia. Long-listed for the 2019 Ockham Book Awards, the book raises important questions about who we become when our memories fail and how we care for our ageing population.
Pip and her husband run Wellington-based communications company 2Write. Song for Rosaleen is her third book of creative non-fiction.
Anne Schumacher
Anne Schumacher is Chief Executive of Dementia Wellington. Dementia Wellington offers advice, support and education free to anyone affected by dementia in the Wellington region, at every stage of the disease. Anne is a Registered Nurse with a masters degree in nursing from Victoria University. Dementia is a life long passion for Anne who has worked extensively in the aged care sector in both residential and community settings and also working in nursing education.
Stories of Dementia
Karori Library
Saturday 7 October, 2-3pm
Free, all welcome.
