Valerie Jones shares why she volunteers for the chapter
Valerie Jones, one of our newest support group facilitators, has served as co-facilitator for the support group at Good Samaritan North for the past six months. Valerie encourages caregivers to attend a support group, “I always compare attending a support group as going to another country where everyone speaks your native tongue,” she says, “The first meeting is always the difficult one, because you don’t know what to say. As you hear others share, you realize that you are not alone; these are your people.”
Our support group volunteers have a passion for helping others through the dementia care giving process. As Valerie puts it, “I think as caregivers we want the best for our loved ones. As a support group facilitator, I like to highlight what caregivers are doing well and make sure they know what resources are available to them.”
Local Resources
The Alzheimer’s Association offers a number of caregiver support groups throughout the Miami Valley region on various days and times; these support groups are led by trained volunteers with personal and/or professional caregiver experience.
Find a list of our caregiver support groups here. For more information about Alzheimer’s Association caregiver support groups, please contact Rebecca at 937.610.7013 or email rhall@alz.org.
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