C. Travic Jackson

Written By Mary Cail

Church congregations are aging. The agingprocessbrings with it uniqueopportunitiesa n d some very specific challenges for churches. Theopportunitiesare endlessand include wisdom,

alived history, amazing stories, and an endless desire to help. One of the challenges of aging forboth the congregation and the pastors and deacons who serve in congregations is the illness of dementia. Mary McDaniel Cail has not only given us a glimpsea n d a firsthand account ofdementia in all its forms, butshe has also presented us with a blueprint and model forwhat she refers to as "compassionate care. This book gentlyguides the reader through the caring process for caregivers andfor those whoreceive the care. Thisbook is verypractical in thati toffersthe definition of dementia, as wel as the realities ofthoseliving with dementia and of those who carefor someone with dementia. She guidesthe readerthrough the process of creatinga caring ministry, including educatingthe congregation and preparing leaders and volunteers to carry out this important work. She provides vocabulary, programs, and activities thatwork. She even includes acomprehensive bibliography for additional study.

As someone who was a caregiver for a parent and a spouse, I highly recommend this book to al congregations, pastors, deacons, and anyone else caring forsomeone with dementia. This

book siwell on its way tobecoming aseminal piece ofliterature for caring ministries.

DeaconDr. Cecelia Travick-Jackson, retired associateprofessor, California LutheranUniversity; Assistant to the Bishop for SeniorAdult Ministry,Southwest California Synod (ELCA);a n d

Mary Cail

Mary Cail earned her PhD and two additional graduate degrees from the University of Virginia. She is the author of Alzheimer's: A Crash Course for Friends and Relatives and Dementia and the Church: Memory, Care, and Inclusion. Mary taught in the graduate school of psychology at James Madison University, where she chaired a national accreditation task force; she has served as a faculty consultant for the University of Virginia’s Department of Academic Affairs. Her op-eds, articles, and blogs on dementia have been published by the Los Angeles Times, the Miami Herald, the Chicago Tribune, Maria Shriver’s Architects of Change series, and the University of Virginia alumni magazine, Virginia, among others. Alzheimer's: A Crash Course for Friends and Relatives was chosen for inclusion in the 2015 Virginia Festival of the Book, and her work to create social opportunities for dementia patients and caregivers in her community was featured on the Charlottesville Newsplex series, Stephanie's Heroes. Mary is the founder of the All-Weather Friend.

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