Arts & Wellness Symposium Draws Record Crowd
The 3rd Annual Arts & Wellness Symposium was held October 13 at the Dr. Phillips Center for the Performing Arts. The symposium, hosted by UCF College of Arts & Humanities and the National Center for Creative Aging, was supported by The Pabst Charitable Foundation for the Arts, the B.L. West Foundation, and the Winter Park Health Foundation. Over 300 people attended this event.
The symposium marked the release of the Creative Caregiving Guide, a free web-based and community-shared resource specially designed for both family and professional caregivers of adults who live with Alzheimer’s disease and related cognitive disorders. The symposium provided an opportunity for UCF to share the results of local research regarding the guide’s effectiveness. In addition, attendees heard from master teaching artists who created the guide which provides vibrant, research-based caregiving exercises to help caregivers and their care partners, flourish in the art of daily caregiving. The guide is available at http://creativecaregiving.creativeaging.org/
A group of over fifty community ambassadors representing various organizations throughout Central Florida attended an orientation held just prior to the symposium. This orientation provided a sneak peek at the website and offered ambassadors the opportunity to experience one of the many hands-on activities, as well as ask questions. In their volunteer role, community ambassadors agree to implement the Creative Caregiving Guide and provide feedback on their experience so creators can continue to refine this valuable resource.
