Thursday, October 10, 2024
On Tuesday, October 8th, from 10:00 to 11:30, the "Orange Cafe (Dementia Cafe)" run by the Hokuryu Town Hall Residents' Division was held at the Hokuryu Town commercial facility Cocowa, with over 20 elderly people taking part and having a great time.
Orange Cafe (Dementia Cafe)
Orange Cafe is a project run by the Hokuryu Town Hall Resident Affairs Division that began in fiscal year 2024. It is held every Tuesday (October 1st, 8th, 15th, 22nd, and 29th) from 10am to 11:30am and is staffed by caregivers, public health nurses, and social workers.
Participants were free to join, freely choose and implement the given themes, and then went home in groups of two or three.
Activities focused on dementia prevention
The activities are themed around dementia prevention, and involve brain training, exercises, games and other activities that get the mind and body moving, while everyone has fun interacting with each other.
All the participants were intelligent, eager to engage in conversation, and kept their brains and hands active, healthy, cheerful and energetic.
The average age of participants is in their late 80s
The average age of the participants was in their late 80s (the oldest was 93, most were in their late 80s, and there were a few in their 70s).
Naoko Uchida, Chief of the Nursing Care Prevention Section, Resident Affairs Division, Hokuryu Town Hall, and Mirai Ohira, Public Health Nurse
Hokuryu Town Dementia Community Support Promoters, Masako Nakajima and Sumiko Suzuki
The project is being carried out by Naoko Uchida, head of the nursing care prevention section of the town hall's Resident Affairs Division, and Mirai Ohira, a public health nurse, with support from Hokuriku Town Dementia Community Support Promoters Masako Nakajima and Sumiko Suzuki.
On the day, even though the event was scheduled to start at 10am, participants began arriving around 9am.
The participants were involved in everything from setting up the tables and chairs to clearing them away after the event. They were incredibly active and energetic, which is hard to believe considering they were over 80 years old.
Drawing on a pumpkin
Masako Nakajima will draw a rough outline on an orange Halloween pumpkin, and everyone will be able to color it freely with magic marker pens.
It's a relaxing space filled with happy smiles and pleasant conversations, with comments like "So cute!" and "That's nice!"
Brain training
- Printed questions to develop concentration, imagination, and thinking skills
- Different prints are given every week, such as arrow cross, skeleton, calculation problems, etc.
- Everyone is working seriously and passionately.
- Arrow Cross:A puzzle with a key (hint) embedded in the square
- Skeleton:A puzzle made up of skeleton grids and keywords
Drinks and snack break
After using your brain a lot, take a break with a drink and some snacks!
Diamond Game
Players take turns moving their pieces, and the first player to get all of their pieces to the goal (the square of the same color opposite the starting point) wins the game.
The oldest player, a 93-year-old, also plays seriously!!!
The energetic group, all in their late 80s, cleaned up quickly and neatly in no time.
The elderly people of Hokuryu Town are fully energized to live long and healthy lives!
With boundless love, gratitude, and prayers, we offer "Orange Cafe" a precious time where people can engage in cheerful and fun conversation, use their brains to the fullest, and hone their concentration, thinking skills, and imagination...
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◇ Interview and text: Ikuko Terauchi (Photography and editing assistance: Noboru Terauchi)
