LEXINGTON, Ky. — Winter in Kentucky can keep people indoors and away from crowds.

What You Need To Know

  • Memory Cafe is an Alzheimer's association and UK’s Sanders-Brown Center on Aging partnership
  • It helps those with serious brain disorders such as Alzheimer's and dementia.

  • Alzheimer’s is typically prevalent among those 65 and older

Reda Harrison says she’s been living her life by a simple playbook after she learned she had Alzheimer’s disease five years ago.

“I mean, it’s just a different way of living. And I’ve learned to embrace my disease because you can’t run from it, can’t hide from it. So you just have to face it,” Harrison said. 

Alzheimer’s is a brain disorder that causes a decline in cognitive function and can lead to dementia. According to the Alzheimer’s Association, it causes nearly 60 to 80% of dementia cases in the United States.

Harrison says her condition came without warning, but with her husband and loved ones’ support, her service pup Dolly Parton beside her, she says she’s living every day to its fullest.

“My biggest part is trying to share my story that there is life after Alzheimer’s, that it’s not a death sentence,” Harrison said. 

That includes spending time with loved ones, building a community, and experiencing events like the Alzheimer’s Association’s memory cafe.

“I get to work with volunteers. We have a lot of volunteers here in Lexington that give education programs that lead support groups and help out with things like today’s Lexington Memory Cafe,” said Meredith Plant with the Alzheimer’s Association.

Those partners include the University of Kentucky Sanders-Brown Center on Aging’s Memory Cafe. 

Partnerships that have helped many people stay connected can be an isolating experience. 

“When you’re a caregiver or when you have a person with the disease, you start to isolate yourself a little bit more and research shows over and over again that socialization is so important.” UK Sanders-Brown center, Sarah Hatch explained. “And so I think that’s why I love this program so much because it brings people together.”

Harrison says it’s why she has enjoyed participating in the last three and aiming for future Alzheimer’s Association annual walks for research and development. 

She says these kinds of moments have helped comfort her and driven her to want to share and help comfort others.  

While Alzheimer’s is typically prevalent among those 65 and older, the Alzheimer’s Association reports almost 200,000 Americans under 65 have the disorder.

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