Kristen Dixon spent a lot of time with her grandmother when she was younger, but dementia robbed Jeanne Corby of the ability to enjoy the kinds of activities they once shared so easily.
The two find a welcome reprieve at the Musical Memories Cafe, inside an old bakery turned performing arts venue, where people eat, sing and dance together.
The cafe, about 20 miles south of Buffalo, is a social gathering space twice a month for isolated older adults, those with dementia and their loved ones.
“It’s a nice memory to have with her, especially since it’s hard to make any new memories,” said Dixon, 40, a medical accounts manager who lives in West Seneca.
Many cafe visitors walk slowly, use a cane or a walker, or arrive in wheelchairs as they make their way to the tables at the West Falls Center for the Arts. They listen to live music for an hour, eat lunch and commune together.
“The music makes them reminisce about their lives,” said musician Doug Yeomans, who started his set last Wednesday with “Here Comes the Sun.”
“You know when you’re at that age and you’re thinking you’ve got more years behind you than you have in front of you? I think it means a lot to them to just get to remember,” Yeomans said.
For regulars with Alzheimer’s and other kinds of dementia, listening to music stimulates their minds.
“They’ll sit together, and they’ll remember the verse of the song. They’ll sing every verse of the song. They’ll clap,” said Carolyn Panzica, executive director of the nonprofit arts center, which has operated the memory cafe since 2018.
“For that hour, they get some of that old joy back.”
The latest cafe lunch included pulled pork sandwiches, macaroni and cheese, salad and dessert. The music, food and fellowship are all free.
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