A local initiative promoting brain-health exercises for seniors has proven successful enough to expand from Fairfax County’s senior centers into its libraries.
Goodwin Living Foundation’s StrongerMemory initiative provides both in-person and online programming. Thirty minutes of cognitive exercises are offered four to five times per week as part of the 12-week free program.
The effort, operating in 14 county senior centers, has proved “a real, clear success,” Jessica Fredericksen, senior director of Goodwin Brain Health, told the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors at a meeting of their Older Adults Committee on Tuesday (June 2).
StrongerMemory began in Fairfax senior centers with a pilot program at two venues. Today, in-person programming attracts 10 to 15 participants per facility, with the Lincolnia Senior Center seeing nearly 40 regular participants.
“Seniors are engaged. They want to come to this,” Fredericksen said.
Providence District Supervisor Dalia Palchik said the success of the initiative affirmed the power and value of partnerships.
“Not everything has to be created by the county. I really love that this is coming from Goodwin,” she said.
Plans to expand StrongerMemory to Fairfax County Public Library call for a new group to start as a pilot program this fall at Dolley Madison Library in McLean. Other libraries will offer dedicated spaces for materials promoting the effort.
Online options are offered in English, Spanish, Chinese (simplified and traditional), Amharic, Farsi, Korean and Japanese. Participants can download a workbook that provides lesson plans for up to five days per week.
Palchik said she was hopeful the in-person programming soon could be provided in multiple languages. Other supervisors pushed for the incorporation of movement components, which are shown to improve overall cognitive abilities.
“The exercise part of this is critical,” said Mount Vernon District Supervisor Dan Storck.
Fredericksen agreed.
“Movement is the best thing you can do for brain health,” she said, calling the StrongerMemory program “a good entry point” for seniors seeking additional services.
Mason District Supervisor Andres Jimenez amplified that view.
“Giving our seniors the tools they can grow with is important,” he said.
The presentation was part of an update on the county government’s SHAPE the Future of Aging effort and its 2023-28 aging plan.
SHAPE is an acronym for:
- Services for Older Adults and Family Caregivers
- Housing and Neighborhood Supports
- Access to Mobility Options
- Personal Well-Being
- Economic Stability and Planning
Now in its third year, the SHAPE action plan is “reframing ageism” and “increasing inclusion and acceptance of all aging adults,” said Beth Ann Margetta, assistant program manager of the Fairfax Area Agency on Aging.
“It’s really making a difference,” added Hunter Mill District Supervisor Walter Alcorn, who chairs the Older Adults Committee.
Photo by Vitaly Gariev/Unsplash
