Gloria’s Way
Tonia Porras
2018 Presenter
Health & Wellness
Presented in partnership with:
November 15, 2018
Tonia Porras pitched her vision for a one-stop resource for education, wellness support, and respite services to guide individuals with dementia, their caregivers, and the community through the arduous journey. She is bringing that vision to life.
In October, Gloria’s Way started Cleveland’s first memory cafe – a safe, relaxing, and stress-free environment where caregivers and persons with early stage memory loss can laugh, share stories, and make meaningful connections. It’s a monthly cafe that runs for 90 mins at the Beachwood Community Center. Participants benefit through discussions of world and cultural events, music, exercise, food tastings, and other memory and brain health related activities. These activities are designed to benefit both the caregiver and person living with dementia and facilitated by licensed social workers, in collaboration with trained staff and volunteers. Our Memory Cafe is free and open to all families caring for someone in the early stages of the disease.
Tonia recently received a grant to assist with the programs upward development.
Gloria’s Way also has a Navigation program, which provides memory care planning and resource and referral to families caring for someone in the early stages of memory loss.