by Mary Stroka
Minnesota taxpayers will spend nearly $750,000 on funding for 11 organizations that are to help families facing Alzheimer’s disease and related dementias.
The Minnesota Board on Aging announced the awards grants earlier this week.
Alzheimer’s disease impacts about 100,000 Minnesotans over the age of 65, and that number is supposed to grow to 120,000 by 2025, MBA Executive Director, Kari Benson said in a news release. The grants will help increase awareness and early diagnosis of the diseases and help caregivers find resources.
This year, Central Minnesota Dementia Community Action Network in St. Cloud received the largest grant: $150,000 to continue developing a community-based Dementia Resource Center that promotes dementia-prevention strategies among clinicians, primary care clinicians’ provision of full-spectrum dementia care, access and use of dementia care resources and an online Dementia Resource Directory.
Faith Community Nurse Network of the Greater Twin Cities, in Mahtomedi received $130,007, which was the second-largest grant. The network will be used to help Metro Faith Community Nurses offer dementia education, resources and wellness assessments to promote early risk and detection screenings and health, wellness and caregiving support services.
Volunteers of America-Minnesota in Edina received $90,954 to strengthen services for people with Alzheimer’s disease and related dementias and their caregivers. The organization will provide culturally appropriate memory and chronic disease screening and connections to services, community education about dementia, and support and education for the health of these individuals’ family and friends.
The smallest grant, $18,500, went to Granite Falls Living at Home Block Nurse Program in Granite Falls. The program will increase awareness of dementia, promote dementia in-home assessments and connections to direct services and social events.
The other grants went to the following organizations:
- Northwoods Caregivers, Bemidji, $77,316.
- Sewa-aifw Inc., Brooklyn Center, $74,999.
- A.C.E. of Southwest Minnesota, Slayton, $57,000.
- CLUES, St. Paul, $50,000.
- Lao Advancement Organization of America, Inc., Minneapolis, $49,906.
- Koochiching Aging Options, International Falls, $31,389.
- North Shore Area Partner, Silver Bay, $19,500.
Last year, Minnesota granted a total of $729,172 to 11 organizations dealing with dementia issues. The largest grant, $150,000, went to Central Minnesota Dementia Community Action Network, Sauk Rapids, for a community-based Dementia Resource Center. Northwoods Caregivers ($115,436), SEWA-AIFW, Inc., Minneapolis ($74,562) and Lao Advancement Organization of America, Inc. ($42,615) were some of the other recipients who received funding in 2021.
In 2020, the board granted $741,781 to 12 organizations. Volunteers of America Minnesota in Edina received $89,575, and Northwoods Caregivers received $114,348.
Northwoods Caregivers’ grants in each of the past three years are meant to support dementia education and support for populations including those of Native Americans and LGBTQ+ communities.
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Mary Stroka is a regular contributor to The Center Square.
Photo “Two Adult Women Beside Each Other” by Andrea Piacquadio.
