For people living with dementia or other forms of memory loss and the caregivers walking alongside them, simply having a welcoming place to spend time with others can make a difference.

That is the idea behind the Memory Café at Rogers Free Library in Bristol, a monthly program designed to provide a relaxed, nonjudgmental space where people experiencing memory loss and their caregivers can socialize, participate in activities and connect with others who understand what they are going through.

After a three-month pilot program over the summer, the library decided to continue the Memory Café as a monthly offering.

Library Director Eileen Dyer said the program grew out of a recognized need in Bristol’s aging population and the library’s effort to provide inclusive programming that responds to the community.

“We know that we have individuals living with dementia, Alzheimer’s, other cognitive issues, and their caregivers might feel they need support,” Dyer said. “So we wanted to bring these people together.”

The pilot was made possible through a Libraries of Rhode Island, or LORI, grant administered through the Rhode Island Office of Library and Information Services. The library received a little more than $2,000 to launch the program, which Dyer described as a “small but powerful grant.”

The pilot sessions drew increasing participation, and the library is now continuing the program with library and Friends funding.

Anyone can attend, regardless of where they live, and there is no registration requirement. A person experiencing memory loss attends with a caregiver.

A place to simply be

Rather than following a rigid schedule, the Memory Café is intentionally informal.

Facilitator Bonnie Evans, a geriatric nurse practitioner who has collaborated with the library on caregiving and aging programs for several years, said the drop-in structure allows families to decide what works for them on a particular day.

“We realized that they may have to follow the lead of the person with the memory loss,” Evans said.

The library sets up several activities suited to different interests and cognitive abilities. There might be a table for painting with water, another for planting seeds, a space for looking through magazines and areas with objects participants can touch or manipulate to keep their hands busy.

“It just really depends on where they are in their journey and what they’re comfortable with,” Dyer said.

Evans facilitates the program alongside Beverly Whitten, who has experience with caregiver support groups.

For Evans, the Memory Café is an extension of work she has been doing in the community since stepping away from clinical practice.

During her years caring for older adults, she repeatedly saw how much support caregivers themselves needed. Evans recalled visiting homes to see patients, only to have caregivers follow her to her car or pull her aside to talk privately about what they were experiencing.

“There were so many needs,” Evans said.

That experience led her to approach the library several years ago about offering programs for caregivers, which later expanded to include broader topics surrounding aging.

Connections for everyone

While the activities provide people experiencing memory loss with something enjoyable to do, the Café also gives caregivers a chance to connect.

Some of those connections are already beginning. Evans said participants who had known each other years ago have recognized one another at the gatherings. Families have also attended alongside hired caregivers.

Participants have told organizers that the Café gives them a reason to leave the house and helps break up the day.

“I think it’s important, also, that they know it’s nonjudgmental,” Evans said. “It’s a place where everybody is there kind of for the same reason.”

Evans hopes that as people attend consistently, caregivers may form friendships and find support among others who understand their experiences.

For now, organizers plan to keep the Memory Café monthly while continuing to spread the word and build participation.

The Memory Café meets from 1 to 3 p.m. in the Herreshoff Community Room at Rogers Free Library. Upcoming gatherings are scheduled for Wednesdays, Oct. 28, Nov. 25 and Dec. 30.

Evans is also beginning to provide a different take-home resource for caregivers at each gathering. Rather than adding formal presentations to what is intended to remain a casual environment, the resources will offer families useful information they can bring home.

The approach keeps the focus on what organizers want the Memory Café to be: a place without expectations, where people experiencing memory loss and their caregivers can get out of the house, spend time together and find community.