The Acacia Living Group’s Jurien Bay Village has joined with the Forget-me-not Dementia Support Association, launching its own Forget Me Not Café last month – providing an inclusive and relaxing space for customers with dementia.
Jurien Bay is situated around 2.5 hours drive north of Perth.
“There a lot of cafes in Jurien Bay but they are all based around tourism and aren’t accessible or comfortable for people with dementia,” Jurien Bay Village Manager Irene Conner said.
“This is like a café within a café really – customers can come along and there are different things on the tables like colouring-in activities and fiddle mats.”
Jurien Bay Village Social Club Secretary and resident Amanda Wallis says it was something the club felt would make a difference within the village and the local community.
“We opened our own café called Reflections Café earlier this year in the village and were interested in creating a Forget-me-not café,” Amanda said.
“There were customers with dementia that attended with their family and carers and they just absolutely loved it.
“I know for the carers it’s a huge job so this is also a place where they can come to relax and just be themselves for a while.”
Going beyond just serving coffee and cake, Amanda and the volunteers also stay connected making regular phone calls to the customers with dementia.
“We can ring them and let them know when the next café is on and see how they are going,”
“For people with dementia, it’s not the end of their life it’s just a different path and journey they are taking.
“Some people feel stressed and horrible with it and they withdraw from society so it’s nice for them to come out and feel supported.”
The Forget-me-not café at Reflections Café will be running every third Friday of the month welcoming the public at their next event on Friday 21st October 2022.
