THE Swan Valley Memory Café in Middle Swan has just received a $10,000 grant from Dementia Australia to help it to continue its good work.

Founder Jan O’Shea, a former nurse, said she was thrilled to receive the grant to help support local efforts to become more dementia friendly, as well as giving something back to the community.

Ms O’Shea said the café in Yule Avenue, Middle Swan, was really more of a meeting place for people with dementia and their friends and family rather than an actual café, although they did have coffee and morning tea.

“We have eight volunteers here at the Minchin Centre in Middle Swan and about 40 people with dementia attend the café on the second and fourth Tuesdays of the month,” Ms O’Shea said.

She said they had been running the cafe for about three years and the grant would help to expand the Middle Swan centre’s activities, enabling the volunteers to work more closely with local people living with dementia.

“On July 19, the memory café is also expanding and we are opening a second café at the Ethel Warren Community Centre in Bullsbrook,” Ms O’Shea said.

City of Swan mayor David Lucas said the Memory Café was opened to Community Care Services club members on the second and fourth Tuesday of each month.

“Seniors living with cognitive impairment can often feel a sense of isolation and attending the Memory Cafe gives them the opportunity to engage socially and connect with other members of the community,” he said.

“Members of Community Care Services have also built friendships with the café members and participate in activities that help sharpen their memory and cognitive skills.”

For more information visit Swan Valley Memory Café on Facebook or call Ms O’Shea on 0419 850 633.