For love of golf, people with dementia return to the course

Calgarians with dementia got a chance to return to golf this week as part of a pilot program run by the city.

The “Love of Golf” pilot program gave them and their care partners the opportunity to return to the game they love.

“The program is for people with dementia who are interested in golf or have played golf before,” said Gennie Liu, the city’s recreation program specialist.

“Most of them have not played golf for many years, due to some of the barriers and challenges associated with dementia.”

Calgarians with dementia got a chance to return to golf this week as part of a pilot program run by the city.

Marjorie Aucoin says her husband Leo was diagnosed with Lewy body dementia five years ago and vascular dementia two years ago.

She says the program has been extremely beneficial for both of them, including her as a caregiver.

“He’s doing something he loves,” Aucoin said.

“Even if this year I found him a little more frustrated than usual, it’s because he knows what he can do, and now what he can’t do.”

Calgarians with dementia got a chance to return to golf this week as part of a pilot program run by the city.

Seven couples are participating in the program with the help of researchers from the University of Calgary’s Department of Kinesiology.

They wanted to explore the potential benefits of bringing golf back into these people’s lives.

All seven couples involved in the pilot project had previously played golf.

Most of them stopped playing because of dementia-related problems.

Prior to the launch of the 12-week pilot project, the city worked closely with Alzheimer Calgary to create dementia-friendly programming, develop staff training and make other supportive changes to the McCall Lake Golf Course.

Calgarians with dementia got a chance to return to golf this week as part of a pilot program run by the city.

Joan and Dave Drader used to play golf often, but it had been ten years since they had last done so.

This pilot project forced Dave to play the game he loves.

“It’s been fantastic,” he said.

“I worked on dementia, but there are a lot of people who have full-blown dementia and are just sitting there doing nothing. So I took them one by one and said, ‘Hey, come with me and we’ll show you some stuff.’ Everybody came with me and now they’re all participating.”

He says having his wife play golf with him made the transition to the course easier.

“For me, it’s a blessing. That’s what helped me the most. Staying in bed and watching TV and that kind of thing didn’t suit me,” he said.

“It was my wife who really convinced me because she said, ‘What do you do?’ She said, ‘You’re a top athlete, I’m a top athlete,’ meaning my wife, and she said, ‘We used to go out all the time and play a full round of golf and then come home and have lunch.’ And I kind of forgot about that with the dementia and feeling sorry for myself and the reality of it. I don’t feel sorry for myself, I really don’t. I just go out and look forward to playing.”

The program proved to be a success and the city plans to continue it.

“As a result, we created a new program during the fall and winter for them to continue, in an indoor setting during the offseason, in a local golf simulator,” Liu said.