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Log November 14 2012 Today, I emailed the Executive Director of the Alzheimer Society Grey Bruce, Deborah Barker, to set up a meeting to discuss details of the major project. I requested that I meet with her for an hour. I listed the following dates for this meeting. Deborah responded back stating that November 23rd during the morning would work for her. The meeting has been confirmed to take place on November 23rd at 10:00 a.m. at the Alzheimer Society Grey Bruce. On the same day, I spoke in person with Kim Skene, program assistant with the Tom Thomson Art Gallery in Owen Sound about a previous inquiry I proposed in an email around having an art display at the gallery involving persons with dementia. She stated that she would forward the email to Robert who coordinates such events and that he is currently on holidays this week. November 15 2012 1. Preparation for meeting with Deborah Items I will bring to Deborah -Copy of proposal to keep on hand -6 copies of persons with dementia consent and 6 copies of personal and professional caregiver consents -Calendar to write down future meetings -Draft email poster advertisement for professional caregivers -Brief description about the project for Deborah to give to individuals (case manager/support counselors) who will help with recruitment of persons with dementia as well as their personal caregivers What do I need to specifically discuss with Deborah? -Method (participants, venues, how I plan to meet human subject policy, procedure, rationale and expected outcomes) -Specific attention must be paid to availability of support counselors to help if and when needed after the art therapy sessions 2. Developing list of psychotherapists available to help professionals who participate in project On this day, I emailed psychotherapist Annabelle Garland, who is an associate of Dr. Shari Gellar, clinical psychologist. I asked Annabelle if she could help me develop a list of psychotherapists who I could refer to around the area. Annabelle got back to me and said we could discuss the development of a list on November 27th 2012.

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3. I emailed Deborah the email poster and brief descriptions for prospective participants in hopes that she will be able to read it before I meet with her next Friday. November 20th 2012 Kim Skene returned my email stating that she would like to sit down with me tomorrow and work out some possible dates for the art display and that Robert would help me install the display. I replied that I would be happy to sit down with her tomorrow to discuss dates. November 21st 2012 I met with Kim Skene and we set a date for the art display, which is March 9th 2012 at 2:00 p.m. The display will go up on March 7th or 8th and will continue through to March 17th and come down March 18th. It will be located in the studio and pieces will be hung up on the wall and left for the week so that others may see the display during March break activities. Robert will also be helping out with the hanging of the display. The display will also correspond with some other exhibits that are going on called Outsiders- what all of these groups have in common is that they are marginalized. The other artwork will be related to mental health, drug use and autism. November 22nd 2012 I emailed the Exe Director of the Tom Thomson Art Gallery, Virginia Eichorn to thank her for this opportunity and I emailed Robert who will be assisting me with putting up the display, and thanked him in advance for his support. November 23rd 2012 I met with Deborah Barker and secured approval to run the project with the support of the Alzheimer Society Grey Bruce. I provided Deborah with copies of consent forms as well as information for prospective participants to hand out. I clearly identified that I would like it if staff could call prospective participants and share the information I had laid out in the documents I provided and that if the prospective participant said yes, I would then call them. Deborah agreed this would be fine. We also discussed that I had already been in contact with two prospective participants and that as opposed to having her staff contact them; I would set up meetings with them to go over the project. We both agreed that it might be too confusing to have another person talk about a project that I had already mentioned to them in my previous art therapy sessions. Deborah informed me that she would be sharing the project with her staff on Monday November 26th at a staff meeting. Deborah and I went over the method and procedure portion of the project and the evaluations. Deborah also thought that having the display celebration in the morning would better suit persons who have memory loss. I agreed with this and advised I would

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speak with Kim Skene about changing the time from 2:00 to 10:00 in the morning. I later sent Deborah an email stating that I am hoping to be able to count on her staff to act as support if participants feel uncomfortable about the project. I sent Kim an email advising of the time change that is required and Kim stated that we would have to change the date of the celebration to March 16th, which is fine with me. The earliest we can have the celebration is noon on this day. (Fulfillment of Venue section). I called and confirmed a meeting with a prospective participant #1 (person with memory loss as well as her personal caregiver) for this coming Monday to talk about the project. These are people I have done some art therapy with prior to this meeting. What I will go over in meeting with prospective participants 1. information for prospective participants document 2. consent forms 3. if they agree to participation, setting up of 2 art therapy sessions for the person with memory loss November 26 2012 1. I sat down with two prospective participants (Ava and Zach) that I have done art therapy with in the past. I explained what the project was about, that they could decline at any time, that there would not be any identifying information used in the project and the time requirements. I also went over the risks and benefits that the project has to offer. Both the person with memory loss and their loved one agreed to participate in the project. The person with memory loss specifically identified that she would do anything to help people understand what this is about (memory loss). I have set up two art therapy sessions with the person with memory loss – December 3rd and December 7th. I also got both participants to sign consent forms and advised I would be bringing them a copy of the consent form when I meet with them next. (Fulfillment of Human Subjects policy section) 2. I contacted another prospective participant (Becca) with memory loss that I have done some art therapy with in the past and she has agreed to meet with me at her home on November 28th at 1:30 p.m. to discuss the project in more detail. Note: I have discussed with Alzheimer Society about having both these participants in the project. It was assumed since I had already made contact with them to od art therapy in the past, I should make contact with them for the project. November 28 2012 1. I sat down with two prospective participants (Becca and Wade), one of which I

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have done art therapy with in the past. I explained the project in detail and both participants read over the consent letters very carefully. After some questioning about how the project would unfold and exactly what it was I wanted them to participate in, they both agreed to participate (the person with memory loss as well as her loved one) and consents were signed. This participant said she would like to include some photography and this had never occurred to me before so I said there is no reason why we could not include it in the art pieces that go up mentioned it. We decided to set a date for December 4th and December 10th for the two individual home based art therapy sessions. The other participant understood I would be contacting him later for the two sessions he is required to attend as a caregiver. (Fulfillment of Human Subjects policy section) Observation: I explained the project in detail to the participant and she kept saying it sounded complicated to her and I believe it as the outline I brought along with me was quite detailed and full of pieces of information about how the project would unfold. I am starting to think that my explanation needs to be shortened and not so in depth. 2. Deborah got back to me and advised she had three professionals volunteer for the project and that one of her support counselors had recruited a person with memory loss as well. Deborah forwarded me the contact information so I could connect with this person. I also confirmed with Deborah that the support counselors who are recruiting do not have to get the consent letters signed and that I would do this piece, as it is my project. Deborah agreed this would be best as well. 3. I contacted a third prospective participant (Cara) for the project and she agreed to meet with me along with her partner the following day- November 29 2012 at 1:00 p.m. November 29 2012 1. I met with a third prospective participant (Cara) at her home and went over the project in detail with her. She was interested in participating and wants to contribute in any way she can. She is a professional artist herself and is looking to get involved in painting again. She asked about using her own paints, which I said is fine, and I said would get some canvases. A consent was signed on this day to reflect her commitment to participation. (Fulfillment of Human Subject Policy section). Observation: This participant allowed me to think about presenting the pieces in a different way and so I thought of the idea that presenting phase one on canvas may be a better and more professional looking than on heavy weight paper. I have now purchased 6 primed canvases and have changed the name of template from Have you read the headlines to The Story. I believe this is much simpler for others to understand. I have also added a step in the project, which includes painting the background of the canvas before placing the image and story on it. I believe this will add a richness to the pieces that was missing from the original idea I had presented.

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Here is how the canvas looks:

I used heavy weight paper to print off the title The Story. I then glued it on using white glue and then used art tape as a border. Since the surface underneath the canvas is rough, the paper and art tape were not sticking as well as I wanted it to so I used Mod Podge over top of it to smooth it out. November 30 2012 1. I received an email from Jennifer C. at the Alzheimer Society Grey Bruce who is helping with recruitment. She and I spoke about recruiting more participants who might be appropriate for this project. We spoke in depth about the type of participants I am looking for and about the TimeSlips process. We also briefly spoke

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about the theoretical orientation of the project. (Fulfillment of Participants section) December 3 2012 1. I left a message for a prospective participant to call me back regarding possibility of being a part of this journey. Please note: No follow up call was ever returned. 2. I met with a participant (Ava) and had one of two art therapy sessions. During this session we completed a creative story and started the background of the canvas that the image will go on.

Our Hawaiian Holiday Where: In Maui When: January 1975 Who: Fred, 53 What is he feeling: elated, jumping for joy because he loves the ocean, he loves swimming, he’s a great diver and good swimmer… Any other reason he is elated: because of the hot weather and it is such a lovely sunny day. Is there anyone else with him: I am there with him on holiday. I would be taking the picture. My name is Wynne. I am 50. We had a table of 4. Another couple that joined us, Joan and Les, who happened to be friends of ours. What did Fred do before this moment: could have been in one of the inlets fishing. He probably might of caught something but he probably put it back in because we had meals catered to us. What will Fred do after this moment: We will probably lay down on a hammock and listen to the music. What kind of music: all kinds of Native dance music Do you hear any other sounds: the sounds of the waves coming on to the beach and the surf in the distance Smell: salty, briny smell of the water What is the weather like: always really warm and beautiful in Hawaii. All over Hawaii. Some beautiful big suns in Hawaii. What will Fred grow up to be: The wonderful caring man that he is. About the trip: beautiful beach…spent many days there, 3 weeks in Hawaii altogether on different islands. There was a lot of things to see in Hawaii. We used to go to Mama’s Seafood Restaurant. We didn’t have to eat at the hotel all the time. We like to visit around to other restaurants. And in the evening, we went to the shows, Hawaiian dances and different costumes. And we passed walking to the beach, a magnolia tree and the ripened fruit had fallen to the ground and they were pulpy and it smelt heavenly. And we visited Maliki Island and a lot of Native Hawaiians lived there. He enjoyed it. We had a wonderful time there. Kauhi- different island, more treed and inlets. It was very peaceful and not quite as warm, a little cooler because of the trees and we were on the big Island Oahu and we were

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on another beautiful beach. We did some surfing and it was fun. It went great. It was wonderful. We did snorkeling, right under the water and you have this head mask on to see under the water. All the different coloured fish and they would come right up to you. And from our window, we could look out on the ocean, we could see the whales blowing out in the water. I got sunburned sitting under a palm tree. We went down the slippery slide and it was slippery and you slide all the way down into the water. Session Notes I arrived and sat down with 1a at her kitchen table. Her sist on her face had finally come to a head and it was oozing out a little while I was there. This has been a big relief for her as it was painful for her. She talked about it throughout the session and how much it hurt but that now it was ok. I had to tell 1b that he was not to be in the room when she was completing her piece because his part comes later. Ava and Zach both thought I would be doing something with 1b today as well. I clarified that he will be coming to a group in January some time and that he will be making art in response to the stories that get developed. He appeared to be fine with this. I presented 1a with a box of 13 images that were pre cut. I told her she could choose one that she felt attracted to and that we would be creating a story about it. She choose the one with the beach and the person jumping up in the air. I asked her a series of questions and wrote down verbatim the answers. The questions included the following: 1. Where you want this to take place? When? 2. Who do you want this to be? 3. How do you want him to feel? Why? 4. Do you want there to be anyone else with him ? Who, what are their names? 5. What do you want him to be doing right before this picture? 6, What do you want him to be doing right after this moment? 7. What sounds do you hear? 8. What smells? 9. What do you want the weather to feel like? 10. What do you want him to grow up to be? During the questioning period, Zach came into the room a few times and saw the story and while this was not a part of the original plan, the two reminiscenced about the trip they took to Hawaii. Unfortunately Zach did correct 1a on a few facts about the trip but this quickly ended. I reread the story to Ava a few times throughout as the story grew into a reminiscence about a trip that actually occurred so every so often 1a would describe

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in detail, the trip to Hawaii. We then titled the story after reading it over in bits and pieces one last time. I then brought out the canvas with ‘The Story’ written on top and asked her to fill in the background and I placed the image in the middle and stated that after she filled in the background on top, that we would glue the image to the canvas and put the story on the bottom. Artwork: Ava took the blue paint and squirted it into the palette. She asked for a smaller brush than what I had put out for her. I found one and she started to paint the blue sky with the image in the middle (not glued down). While the image was not glued down, she went over it a bit with the paint and it seemed to stick. She later tried to wipe the blue paint off of the image but this did not work as it was dried. Ava stopped mid way down the canvas as she realized I wanted her to put the story at the bottom. She then made a sun in the right hand corner and because the blue was not dry, when she mixed yellow with it, the sun was green in colour. She waited for a bit to let it dry and the next time she put it on it was more yellow but there was still hints of green in it. It was during the painting that Zach left and went shopping so Ava and I were left on our own. During this time, Ava turned to me and asked how my life was going. I said ok, things are going and progressing along. I in turn asked how Wynne was doing and she said ok. At 2:45 p.m. it seemed to come to a stand still as Ava could not make the sun with any more yellow and she had to wait for the blue paint to dry to put anything else on it. I asked if she wanted to stop as I wanted to respect the time commitment that I said I would stick to and she said yes that is enough for today. Ava as always helped clean up and washed out the palette and the brushes as well as folding the paper I placed beneath the canvas. Ava said she would keep it for next session. Near the end of the session, I presented Ava with a copy of the consents for herself and for Zach and she said she would keep them in her folder. I then got Ava to fill out the questionnaire I developed for her. She circled the face with a smile furthest to the left for the first question and said the face would say happy. When I asked her the third question, she said if there was easier way to do the art and how to express myself better in the art. I am not sure if she understood the question but I did not ask again. Ava thanked me again for all the time I have spent with her and how much she appreciated it and that it was fun.

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Ava asked what we would do with the canvas- I said I could take it and put it in my car and then I could measure out how much room I would have to place the story on it. She did not seem to mind this. At the end of the session, I thanked Ava for her participation and how wonderful it was to hear her story. I asked her if she wanted me to keep her company until Zach got back and she said she would be fine and that she had things to do. Ava presented as very capable on this day so I did not hesitate to leave her and knew that Zach sometimes leaves her alone as well. Ava’s affect during session: Comfortable, calm, cooperative, smiling, interested, motivated, curious Observation: The participant used her own name and her partner’s name. I will have to add a box at the end of the consent form to provide permission to have names shown in a public art display. I did not plan for this to occur however I believe it can be solved by asking permission in the event that participant uses their own name. December 4 2012 1. I had an email sent to me stating that one of the prospective participants (Cara) has chosen to withdraw from the project due to feeling overwhelmed. Observation: The ways I explained the project to persons with memory loss may be too convoluted for them to clearly understand what I am trying to say. I need to simplify my explanation to them and not necessarily leave the information for prospective participants sheet with them. When I look at the sheet, I see my project broken down into phases but it may appear as though they are responsible for completing all the phases on their own. 2. I spoke with prospective participant’s Cara’s daughter and she said how overwhelmed things can get and she wondered if I brought in an example of what I wanted them to do would help clarify things. I agreed with this idea. She stated that her mother has agreed to be a part of the project again and that she would also be involved as a participant (Vi). 3. I did one of two art therapy sessions with a participant (Becca) with memory loss. We spent over the time limit figuring out how she wanted to place the image onto the canvas however she did not loose interest or seem tired by the extra time spent. In fact she liked it very much.

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What about me/us?

Where: Likely in the kitchen

When: Summer in the fifties

Who: Scotty (the dog outside), Joey (the dog inside) and Joey or John (the boy) or just Joey.

John sounds too serious for that guy

What happened before this moment: He obviously climbed up on a chair to get the cookies

jar and the dogs feel left out. Poor little things. He’s got too big of a blanket on him for

summertime. He’s been playing outside cause he’s torn the knee out of his pants. The dogs

followed him in. Uh oh gotcha!

What is happening now: I think the parents have gone some place cause I can tell you, a kid

climbing into the cupboard makes noise

What kind of noise: the scraping of the chair over to the counter and the banging on the

counter and cupboard doors

Where are his parents: could be out in the garden

Anything else: He’s in the cookies jar again…gotcha! Here’s this poor little fella looking in

sitting all by himself. This fellow has a cookie jar down and he has a glass that he is going to

kick over…especially if the dog comes in…He is going to move his leg around and he is going

to hit the glass of whatever.

More about Scotty the dog: He’s sitting on pavement outside the door. He’s got a towel

around him. He’s so cute...patient…this one (Joey the dog) barging right in and there will

probably be nothing left with those two guys ahead of him

Is Joey (the boy) in trouble: He will be because he has a cup of something on the floor he will

likely spill and a cookie jar down there which he is not supposed to have either and he has a hole

in his pants

Who does Joey (the boy) live with: He lives with the dog, he could be 6 and might be in

school…in grade 3. This dog (Joey) is older I would say because he seems to know his way

around

How does Joey (the boy) get along with his parents: pretty good from the way he’s dressed.

These are hand me downs. There won’t be anybody wanting those overalls.

What will Joey grow up to be: He’s got ingenuity, he can climb

Session notes

I arrived early and Becca took her time to get ready in order to see me. I did not mind

this. I sat at the table and calmed myself before starting the session. After she was ready

she came and sat down and put her hand into the box before I could explain what it was I

wanted her to do. I asked her if she wanted to pick out an image that attracted her and that

we would be creating a story about it. Becca took her time in choosing an image to work

with. She has such a detailed way of looking at things and she is able to pick out

shadows and if the picture has been superimposed upon and if pictures are too busy. She

tossed some aside and then focused on a few. She naturally gravitated towards two

images and put them side-by-side. She immediately saw a connection between the two

and I did not say anything (as I asked her to pick out one and not two images) because

she said it looks like this dog is outside waiting to get in. I used this as a jumping off

point to start my series of questions. Before I could ask the first question she titled it

‘What about me’ I asked her the following in a naturally occurring order:

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What, where, when is happening

What happened before this moment

What are their names

Is he in trouble? Why?

Where is his family?

Does he have siblings?

What will he grow up to be?

What sounds do you hear?

Tell me more about that…

After I re read the story throughout it appeared as though the story was complete. What I

have noticed is that chunks of the story come out in an order that does not match my

questioning and so I just went with it because it is such great material and needed to be in

the story. It just means that I have to put the answers into categories after it is finished so

that it can be read in a fashion that others can enjoy what the creator is trying to convey.

This does not veer from the TimeSlips method as Basting suggests the story can be

written down in two different ways- as questions or as categories. I am changing the

method in the sense that I am including the actual Question in the story before the

response whereas Basting uses the answers in a row.

After the story I presented Becca with the canvas and for the next hour, she tossed around

ideas about how to place the images on the canvas. I decided at this point that I would

get another canvas to put the story on as there is no room for two images plus the story.

Becca is ok with this. Becca questioned whether the photographers name should be cut

off or not and or whether the image of Scotty should be outlined in black and whether it

needed to be cut. In the end it was decided that the image would be outlined in black

using art tape and that the photographers names would be left on because doing so left

room to put a caption under the image that Shirley wanted to have

Image of boy with cookies jar: Gotcha

Image of dog with towel: What about me?

Becca questioned her ability to use her own hand printing on the piece but I have

encouraged her to do so. I will also bring Avery clear labels with the titles that can be

mounted in case they are needed. I have also decided to put the art tape along the outside

of the image of the dog with the towel and to present one with and one without it for

Becca to look at. Becca decided she wanted to leave the background of the canvas white

as she thought it created a good contrast.

At the end of the session I thanked her for her story and then provided her with copies of

the consents and with the session evaluation. She filled it out herself saying she enjoyed

it and would like to do it again. It was quite amazing given that we went for almost two

hours without a break- total concentration upon the pieces.

Affect: calm, cooperative, comfortable, smiling, interested, motivated

There was definitely some indecisiveness but when presented with multiple choices,

Becca takes her time in deciding how things should go and I have to respect this and

besides, she enjoyed her time and that is the best thing that can happen.

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Observation: What I am noticing is that I need to put the questions in front of the answers for the write up or else I would have to use filler words and I want all the answers to be in the client’s voice. There are stories that are posted without the questions in front of them but I think this way, the reader has a better understanding of what is happening and at the same time, can have access to ways in which communication can unfold. What I have noticed is that chunks of the story come out in an order that does not match my questioning and so I just went with it because it is such great material and needed to be in the story. It just means that I have to put the answers into categories after it is finished so that it can be read in a fashion that others can enjoy what the creator is trying to convey. This does not veer from the TimeSlips method as Basting suggests the story can be written down in two different ways- as questions or as categories. I am changing the method in the sense that I am including the actual Question in the story before the response whereas Basting uses the answers in a row for a final storytelling. I like putting the question before the answer because you get to see part of the process of how the story was created. 4. I sent out an email to Julie Diaz who works as a Team Leader with the Home and Community Support Services. This organization provides day away programming for seniors in various communities throughout Grey and Bruce counties. I had previously worked with Julie as an art therapist student for a practicum experience out of the Wiarton setting. I wanted to connect with Julie to see if she could help out with recruitment. December 5 2012 1. I did one of two art therapy sessions with a participant (Cara) who originally declined to participate but was convinced to re enter the project by her daughter. Lori Where: In a house, in a town When: sixties Who: Lori. She’s 4 What is happening: She’s too neat and tidy to be too sick. I think she could possibly be looking at someone she does not know too well. She’s questioning it anyways. She’s very curious about something. She obviously likes art. She’s got a lot of stuff around- a lot of pictures. I would say her mother is standing over there talking/discussing with the doctor. She’s questioning what’s going on. Why’s she’s there. This is all new to her What is her mother’s name: Mary What is she holding in her lap: We don’t know. She’s not cuddling it. Does she have any other family: an older brother, just 1 or 2 years older. His name is Bob. Does she have any pets: Dogs are such a pain in the ass but she’s still got one. What is the dog’s name: Toby the beagle

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What happens after this moment: I’d like her to go through the testing and do it without scaring her. We are not sure what’s wrong with her. Good memories and bad memories when it comes to medicine, should be taken into account. What do you want her to grow up to be: A high school teacher Session notes When I arrived, Cara answered the door. She welcomed me in and they (her husband and her) were still having lunch so I sat at the table as she offered me tea. She then offered me a sweet bread and I took some. We spoke briefly about the project and how she had some ideas. She brought over some pictures she had and said she had an idea. I said I had brought some images and she said oh, I didn’t have to come up with the images and I said no. I was thinking maybe we should have gone wit h her photo but there was no people in it and it was a pathway. It could have been good but I just wanted to follow the outline for the project which was to use Timeslips images. Cara did want her husband to stay but her husband said oh I will just be in the next room. Cara was ok with this. I could tell she was a bit nervous as well because before she was finished lunch, she pushed it aside all of a sudden and she was finished. I believe that me coming early did not make things better. When we started, I showed Cara an example of what we were going to do as her daughter suggested that I provide something to her so she gets the idea and that this would help. I took her advice and provided Cara with a paper that I glued The Story to as well as an image and story I got from the TimeSlips website. Cara took her time in picking an image and said it was challenging in some ways. I tried to support her by pointing to the images she had put aside to look at another time. Observation question: do I have too many images to choose from? I gave Cara an example of what questions I would ask when she picked up one image with a child sitting in a bed and said what do you want to say is happening here. She started with well she is too neat and tidy to be too sick. I said that these are the sorts of questions I would be asking. She put the image down and then looked at a few others and then came back to the same image. I said, do you want to use this one. She said why not. So we started. I asked her the following questions about the image: What do you want to say is happening here- I repeated what she had already said and continued from there I asked her when she wanted it to take place Where she wanted it to take place She added bits of what was happening in the picture throughout this time in between the questions What is she holding in her lap

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Names of the person sitting there as well as the mother she mentioned Does she have any other family Does she have a pet, what is the name What do you want her to grow up to be What do you want to happen after this moment Throughout Cara said you sure make the questions difficult or hard or something to that effect. I tried to ease her worry by saying she could answer in any way she liked and that there were no right or wrong answers. What I noticed was that as the story went on, she relied more on her daughter’s history- like her daughter had a dog so this girl will have a dog. She has a big dog but I don’t like really big dogs she said. I said well do you want Lori in the picture to have a different dog and she said why not. Lets make him a beagle. Observation: it is impossible to separate the development of the story from pieces of a person’s memory and history. The two get intertwined to create a story and it is up to me to ensure that they don’t’ have to rely on memory alone. That the story can be whatever they want it to be. Observation: I wrote down and repeated all the words she said and she said to me, don’t write that down or are you going to write down everything I say. I have a feeling that I need to wait before I write things down. Repeat it and then say can we write that down. I reread the story a few times and after we titled it- Lori. After the story, I brought out the canvas and asked her to create a background for the image to go on and that I would be writing the story up to go in the bottom half of the canvas. Cara originally thought she had to sketch the actual background and so I put the image in the middle of the canvas and asked her to picks some colours she’d like to use for the background. She got out the paints and started mixing colours. It was amazing to watch her mix colours and put them on the canvas and how well they matched the colours in the image. I felt happy as Cara said to me when meeting for the first time that she wanted to know she could still mix colours and here she was doing it. The time it took to finish the piece was almost 1.5 hours and in total I was there for 2 hours but she did not seem to mind and was heavily involved in creating this background for the piece. She was very attentive to the fact that their were some white parts showing through and she asked me if I had primed the canvas beforehand. I said I bought them primed. Throughout she would place the image on the canvas to see how it looked and she asked several times about filling in the bottom. I just repeated what I had said earlier that I would be placing the story in this portion of the canvas. While doing the canvas, she told me about having breast cancer and how painful this was and that the motion she was doing was a little painful. I asked her if she wanted to stop and she said no that it could come even when she was just sitting there.

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At one point she brought her husband in and wanted him to look at the story. I read it to him and he did not comment. He just said, or the girl could be saying (I had forgotten what he said). This did not seem to bother Cara which was good. This is a dilemma one is faced with- when a loved one is invited into the room by the participant- to share their work. I watched Cara closely while she mixed the colours and put them onto the canvas. It was so relaxing to watch her. She asked me if I was falling asleep yet and I said no and how wonderful it was to see her put the colours onto the canvas. After she was almost finished she advised that I needed to cut the white off the image as it did not go. I asked her if she wanted me to come back next week to finish it off and she said no she would prefer if I came back in January. I said that is fine and that I would call her then. She said she was just too overwhelmed with everything right now and that she had a lot to do. Cara helped me clean up the paints and she washed out the palette and the brush she used. Cara’s affect during the session: motivated, smiling, interested, cooperative Observations and questions during session: -Do I have too many images to choose from? Sometimes too many choices can be overwhelming and confusing. -It is impossible to separate the development of the story from pieces of a person’s memory and history. The two get intertwined to create a story and it is up to me to ensure that they don’t’ have to rely on memory alone- That the story can be whatever they want it to be. - I wrote down and repeated all the words she said and she said to me, don’t write that down or are you going to write down everything I say. I have a feeling that I need to wait before I write things down. Repeat it and then say can we write that down. 2. Jennifer from the Alzheimer Society left me a message with another prospective participant’s name and phone number to call. December 6 2012 1. I called and will meet with a prospective participant on Monday December 10 2012 at their home. December 10 2012 to December 12 2012

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1. I had to cancel all sessions for this week since I became very ill with a virus and did not want to share my germs with anyone else. All sessions have been re scheduled for the following week beginning on December 17th 2012. 2. I sent out an email to Kim Skene at the art gallery asking about available times for me to facilitate one art therapy session with the personal and professional caregivers who have agreed to participate in the major project. December 11 2012 (fulfillment of participants section- sending email information for prospective participants to professionals) 1. I sent out an email to Deborah Barker asking her to forward an email to all prospective professional caregivers who are interested in participating in the project. I asked that each professional confirm that they are still in fact interested in participating and once they have confirmed, dates for sessions can be provided. 2. Kim Skene sent an email back stating that February 26 or 27 would work as potential dates to have the art therapy session for the personal and professional caregivers. December 12 2012 1. I received emails from all three professionals stating their commitment to the project. I sent out an email to all of them stating that I am in the midst of setting up the first session at the Alzheimer Society for the last week of January 2013 and the second session at the art gallery for Feb 26 or 27th. I asked if these dates interfered with anything. 2. I sent an email to Deborah outlining my request to have the first session sometime during the last week of January at the Alzheimer Society Grey Bruce. Deborah got back to me suggesting January 31st 2012 will work from 10 to 11. This has since been booked. (Fulfillment of Venue section) 3. I sent out an email to all professionals stating that January 31st will be the date for the first session from 10 to 11 at their agency and that Feb 26 from 10 to 12 will be the date and time for the second session. (Fulfillment of Venue section) *Notifying the personal caregivers of these times will become my next task. December 14 2012 1. Jennifer left me a voice message stating that she may have another prospective participant interested in the project. This participant is someone who was a part of the art therapy group I ran through the Alzheimer Society Grey Bruce. Jennifer left me the number where to reach this participant. 2. Julie Diaz from Home and Community Services left me an email stating that she is interested in talking about the project and wanted to know when I wanted to meet

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up. I sent her an email back stating I was available to meet on Friday December 21 2012 but that I would send her other available dates and information when I got back to my home, as I was in Toronto when I received the email. December 17 2012 1. I met with participant named Cole at his home to explain the project and a consent was signed by a legal guardian. We then had the first of two art therapy sessions. (Fulfillment of Human Subjects policy)

Happiness Where: Not in the hospital because I don’t see any other people. When: A long time ago. It’s a long time that people were in a bedroom like that Who: Sandra, an old fashioned name. She’s a very young girl. What is happening: There’s a girl here. She’s ill because she’s in bed. There’s a little lamp here. She’s in bed and that’s all I can say. Haven’t seen the mother or father, which is strange because she’s in bed. Does she have a family: Of course. There must be a family here because she’s ill and someone looks after her. Who looks after her: In this case, it looks like her mother because she is in bed What is her mother’s name: Cecilia. Does she have any other family: Don’t know where the father is. It is difficult for her. That’s painful. It could be a problem. He has to be there for the livelihood. He must do a lot of things. What is his name: Garrett. Does she have any siblings: Very likely. What are their name(s): Fredrick, also an old fashioned name. Does she have any pets: A little dog. What does she want more than anything right now: To run around. She would like to do that again. She looks in good condition. What do you want to happen right after this moment: I want her to go back to the place where she lives and to run around. What do you want her to grow up to be: She’s too young to marry. She’s a child. She must have fun. Session notes I arrived and Cole and his partner were coming into the house from outside. I smiled at 4 and he smiled back. His Partner said, your Kirsten. I said yes I am. Cole this is Kirsten, and I shook his hand. We all went into the kitchen and I waited for his partner to clear things away from the table so Cole and I could sit down. Once sitting, his partne was up and about but still within earshot. I explained to Cole who I was and why I wanted him to participate in the project. He said a few times that his wife was the artist. I tried to explain that I was interested in what him. He smiled throughout the explanation. I talked as briefly as I could as his partner told me to keep things short if I could. I explained the benefits, risks,

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confidentiality, what I would do with the findings and his right to decline and that there was no art or creative storytelling experience required. I then brought out the consent. He looked at it and said it would take a long time to read. At this time, his partner was sitting at the table with us and said she would read it over and sign it. I looked at Cole to see if this was something that bothered him by his facial expression and it appeared as though he did not mind. Observation: Having proper consent is crucial but given the circumstances, it is difficult to get informed consent from the participant. The consent letter was too complex and too long for him to read – completely overwhelming and at the same time, I have no idea how to present a consent any other way. After signing the consent Cole’s partner asked if she could stay or if I wanted her to go into the next room and I said I would prefer her to go into the next room. I brought out the box of images for Cole to look at. I instructed him to go through the images and to pick out one that he felt attracted to or that he liked in some way. He looked into the box and then picked the box up. He moved the box around like he was trying to see into it so I said he could pick up the images in the box to see them. He looked at the first image and made a comment about it. I pulled the images out of the box for him and he started to go through the first few images. He held up the one with the child in the bed and said something that she was ill. I asked him if he wanted to use this one and after he looked at one with a dog on it (which he was not sure what it was) he said well ok. I asked him the following questions: What do you want to say is happening here? What do you want to say is sitting in her lap? When do you want to say this is happening? What do you want to call her? Do you ant her to have a family? Who- what do you want to name them? Do you want her to have a pet? If so, name What does she want more than anything right now What do you want to have happen after this moment What do you want her to grow up to be I then asked for a title of the story During this time, I re read the story several times back to him which is something Partner offered as a compliment later to me- she could hear in the next room the way I was speaking to him. She thought this was a good idea. After the story he smiled at me and so I brought out the canvas and the paints. This was awkward because it appeared to be disconnected for him- he looked puzzled when I presented him with the canvas. I put the image onto the canvas and asked him to create a background for the canvas.

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Observation: In this case, I think gluing the image onto the canvas first and then doing the background may have worked better. I think I assumed that he could envision the image on the canvas and create the background around it- same goes for the story. It is an imaginary line I am asking them to keep in mind for the bottom half of the canvas- as I have to type it up and then during the second session is when we put it on the canvas. Cole kept saying he is not an artist and that he plays piano and that his wife is the artist. I said that he could try out the paints if he liked to see how they went onto to the canvas. Cole took his time in choosing a colour and then I helped him open it. He used the red even though he later said it was not a colour he uses often and it is not him. He squirted it into the palette like a design and then used the brush to put the paint all around in the palette. I believe he thought the palette was the thing I wanted him to paint. I suggested that he could also use the paint on the canvas. He then asked about the green and so he opened it and he made a pattern with the paint and began painting in the palette. I suggested that he could use the paint to put onto the canvas as well and this took some time for him to put the paintbrush in the palette and onto the canvas. He made circular strokes with it and then dipped it in red even though he said he did not want red. This went on for a few minutes and I gave him extra brushes so he could dip it into the green but each time he would dip it into the red. I got out a cup of water and paper towel as I did not have any more brushes for him to dip without having to clean them. He tried it and then oh, so the paint comes off. I managed to find a brush that did not have paint on it and said he could use that one as the red was not coming off as I had liked. He used the green and he did dip it in a few more times and made swirl circle patterns. He then said he was finished. I said great. I thanked him for the story and for the art piece and I explained I would be coming back with the story written up and that we could glue the image and the story to another canvas. He said ok. We then sat and he talked about the war – hearing ammo go off, having to go back to Germany after the war, his best friend, and sailing as a boy as well as losing his father at a young age. This was interesting because in he story he made up, the girl’s father was missing and this was painful for her he said. His partner came into the room and offered me coffee and so I stayed out of courtesy. I was introduced to some Dutch traditions of a waffle like pastry that you put over the coffee to warm it up. What a great experience. At this point I realized I had not provided Cole with the end of session questionnaire and so I tried to see if he could fill it out and he said well it was a long time ago. I agreed and forewent the questionnaire. We booked another time for me to come in the New Year on Jan 7th at the same time.

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Affect during session: calm, cooperative, relaxed, comfortable, in his own element doing his own thing Observation: when in someone’s home, one cannot assume they can use the sink or paper towel to clean up the paint mess. Since it is paint, putting it down the drain is really not an option for several reasons-plugging up the drain as well as polluting. I did ask in this case as I have in every other case, to use paper towel and I try to clean up as much paint as possible using paper towel and throwing it into the garbage so minimal amounts of paint go down the drain. However it seems a little awkward at first to ask for this. It is during these times when I wish I could have a portable sink with me. Observation: Having proper consent is crucial but given the circumstances, it is difficult to get informed consent from the participant. The consent letter was too complex and too long for him to read – completely overwhelming and at the same time, I have no idea how to present a consent any other way. 2. I met with participant Becca at her home and completed the second art therapy session out of two. I also informed participant Wade of the dates and times of the two sessions he has agreed to attend as a caregiver. Session Two: December 17 2012

I arrived and Wade answered the door saying he had forgot I was scheduled to come. I

asked if this is still an ok time to be here and he said yes. I saw Becca in the kitchen and

asked how she was doing- she said fine. Note that Becca usually has a lot of back pain

and this is the first time she has not told me about it in her response as to how she is

doing.

I sat down and got out all the art materials and the canvas from the first session. I

explained to her that I had outlined the photo of the dog Scotty in black art tape as she

requested but I still had the original photo in case she did not like the black art tape I

used. I re read the story to her and pointed to the picture(s) while doing so. I emphasized

that she created the story and that we had discussed earlier that she had wanted a black

border around the one photo and the nametags to go with the pictures.

Becca arranged the photos in several different ways and would stop and look at the story

she had created. I asked her about the black art tape border and she said she liked it so

we would use this photo. I then took out the Avery labels I had made up for the names of

the images she had chosen- Gotcha and What about me. Becca added a question mark to

the What about me. This was a task in and of itself because we had to find the right

marker to go on and to make sure it did not come off of the Avery label. Becca spent

time cutting the nametags a bit shorter to suit her liking after she added the question

mark. It was very difficult to peel the label from the backing and so I helped with this.

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Becca organized the photos on the canvas and then said there needs to be something in

these two corners. At the same time, I had also got out the templates and placed them

onto the table for her to look at- a wheel barrel and a backyard scene. When Becca

mentioned she needed something else to go in the other two corners, I got the collage out

and she sifted through the pictures of flowers and animals and landscapes that I had

provided. I used this type of images because she had said earlier she liked flowers and

landscapes. She found a few images she liked and then decided on a dragonfly close up

with pelting rain or what she described as snow coming down. The other image she

chose was of huge trees in the snow. She looked and read the story over and questioned

once that it was summertime in the fifties and that she had chosen snow theme to go

beside the photo.

Becca then spent time re organizing the images on to the canvas. The margins were

extremely important to her. At one point she got out the measuring tape but then did not

know how to quite use it so she put it down. After she had decided she liked the way she

organized the images (a person looks left to right she said so the story reads that it is wet

outside and so that is why the boy is inside and the dog is outside in the cold), I had

offered her glue to put them onto the canvas. This was a difficult process because the

canvas has little grooves in it and it does not stick to it as well and so the corners kept

coming up. This was a bit of a challenge for Becca to overcome but she did it. She stood

up and this seemed to help with sticking it down but I worried about her back and leaning

over. She never complained once.

Observation: should I be using contractor tape instead because of the difficulty with the

glue. I had tried out both ways prior and felt the glue could do the trick but different

people put glue on different ways and in different layers of thickness. This affects how

the image sticks to the canvas.

After that, I told her I had the story to put onto another canvas and I showed her. This

again took some time to center to the story onto the canvas and then to glue it. Becca was

concerned about the margins. Becca had thought she could make the canvas smaller as

she felt it was a bit too big but then said we will leave it. At one point Becca had also

wanted to somehow incorporate the image of the dog Scotty onto the second canvas and

then I showed her the piece she had just finished and she said oh I have it already. I had

to show her the canvas with the four images on it a few times and to tell her that they will

go side by side in the gallery. She had also asked a few times where the pieces would

end up. She felt that they would go well in a kindergarten classroom. Becca tried out

different techniques while she glued all of the pieces down. After this Becca went over

the story and found a pen and did some corrections- she put a comma and an exclamation

mark onto the story that she had glued to the canvas.

So reflective of who she is- she had been employed as an editor in her earlier years.

Throughout the sessions she kept saying that everyone always used to tell her she was too

particular and that her mother said she always took too long to do things. I said well this

is your process and you can take as long as you’d like.

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When she was finished, I held up the two canvases side by side and she smiled at it. The

way I held them up was to have the pictures first and then the story canvas to the right of

the pictures. she wanted to show Wade I told her that Wade is participating in the next

half of the project and that I’d like to keep the stories anonymous so that he can choose to

pick her story to do an artistic response on his own. BEcca thought this was a good idea.

Becca then looked at the story again and re read it and thought Wade should see it. I

explained that Wade was participating in the project as well and that I had hoped to keep

the stories private as he will see it during the session he will attend. Becca agreed.

Becca’s affect during session: calm, cooperative, comfortable, motivated, interested,

smiling, happy

The session lasted two hours as did the previous session however Becca was concentrated

the whole time and when I gave her the post session questionnaire she said the session

was great. She said it was too bad they were ending. I told her that after the project I

would be coming to see her again.

I had told Wade about the timing of the two sessions he is to attend as well as location.

Observation: I did not ask what he would do with Becca during the session. I had not

thought about this prior to this moment. I am not sure if Becca can be left alone and so

this makes it difficult if he cannot find someone. I am not sure I have made it clear that

the partners are not invited to the sessions that the caregivers are participating in. I might

have to figure out something for them to do if they intend on bringing them.

December 18 2012 1. I telephoned Wade to clarify that the sessions he will be attending are for him only and that I hoped he had a plan for his partner while he attended the sessions. He said he had not known that the sessions only included him and as a general rule he always goes together with his partner for everything. He said he will see what he can do and does not expect it to be a problem to organize something. He took my number down as well as I advised if he could not find anyone to look after her while he attended the session, we could figure out something together. 2. I telephoned Vi (left message) about the dates and times and location of the two sessions she has agreed to attend. I also left my number if she wants to reach me. 3. I phoned prospective participant and organized a time to meet with her and her partner on January 3rd at 10:00 a.m. in their home. December 19 2012 1. I created a consent form that included receiving permission to have identifying information attached to the artwork created, as I have noticed that some of the participants have used their own name or the names of their loved ones in the story. I also added to this consent form about photographing the artwork for education

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and professional publication purposes as I realized I did not have this in my original consent. (Fulfillment of Human Subjects policy) 2. I cut contractor tape and stuck it to the back of the story that will be put on the canvas (for participant Ava). I used an exactor knife to do this with as my previous attempt at using scissors did not work as the stickiness of the tape stuck to the scissors. Using the exactor knife was so much simpler and easier to manage. I will now use the contractor tape and have it ready to be stuck onto the canvas before I arrive for the sessions that remain with the participants who need to put their images onto the canvas. 3. I met with participant Ava in her home to commence the second art therapy session. The participant had sprained her wrist badly and so we focused efforts on getting the story onto the canvas and then re booked for January 2nd at 1:00 p.m. to create more art. 4. I informed Zach about the times and dates and location of the first and second session he has agreed to attend as a loved one. I placed special emphasis upon the fact that it is just him that needs to attend and not both of them. 5. I have booked a professional caregiver for a session that will last for 2 hours at her office on January 24 2013 as she is not able to attend the group sessions I have set up. January 2nd 2013 I met with Ava at her home and completed the 2nd art therapy session with her. This was a make up session as the previous session ended early because of wrist pain she was experiencing. Time: 1-2 in afternoon I came in and Ava greeted me with a smile. We talked a little about how the holidays went and that she was glad they were finished. We then settled at the kitchen table. -I presented Ava with the original creative story art piece she completed the last session and said I wanted to review it and see if she wanted to add any art pieces -Ava read the story to herself as she said she wanted to over me reading it. She then asked Zach to come into the room to remind her of something she wanted to tell me about the trip. Zach talked about the catamaran tour they went on together and a brief story was told about how they wanted to go and the tour company was waiting for people to sign up but nobody did and they took them anyways so it was just them on the tour and they went and had lunch. I talked about how interesting it must have been to be the only ones on the tour. -I presented Ava with a few options – three templates that could be filled in- one with a map, one with a sign that could represent Mama’s seafood restaurant and a magnolia. I also brought out travel books that had Hawaii trips and pictures in them as well as paper and markers and paints

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Observation: I am not sure if it was too overwhelming to have so many choices to choose from. I asked Ava first if she would like to add to her original creative story art piece and she said she liked it the way it was Ava said she like to start with the sign so she took the brush tip sharpie and in black, wrote Mama Seafood Restaurant and below she wrote poy poys (a type of fish) Shrimp and sea food. She then drew what looked to be an outline of a fish -Next she took the outline of the magnolia and she coloured it in with brush tip sharpies and markers. She used a variety of colours to do this. She then wrote magnolia as I asked her which way she wanted it to be displayed. Afterwards I held it up and beside the original art piece to show her that it how it may look in the art display- she smiled and then said oh yes that’s great. I then asked her where she would like to place the pieces she had just done=- meaning which sides so that when I put the display up that I could do it the way she liked it- I laid it on the floor so she could see and I rearranged them in different ways until she said she liked it I then took a picture of it so I could use this as a guide when the display was to go up I announced that it was important to me that display preferences be honoured and Ava greed I then asked Ava if she wanted to do any more art and she looked at the map template and got Zach out of the room again to ask where Mama’s Seafood was located. Zach came out and said it was in Maui and he pointed to the place on the map where it was. Fred said he was surprised she remembered this and Ava said she did remember a few things. I echoed this observation Ava took a pink marker and wrote Mama Sea Food on the map where the restaurant was located but because it was too small and light in colour to see, she used the purple marker to go over top of it and made an arrow pointing to the place where it was on the map She called Zach back out again and asked him where it should go in the display I tried to reiterate that it was her choice and then Zach asked what flower it was and I said the magnolia and Ava said remember that tree that we saw on the beach. Zach shook his head and said no it wasn’t a and I said that in her story, it was a magnolia tree and Zach said oh ok. Ava then said this is about getting her to remember. I then took this opportunity to say that the unique part of this project is that you can rely on memory or some may choose not to. It is up to the individual and it may combine memory with other stories. Zach left the room after I took a picture of the final way Ava wanted the pieces displayed. I sat back down with AVa and asked if she wanted to create one more piece or if she felt she was finished. She said it was enough for her for today She then said the following which I wrote down and asked her if I could include it in the display – this is about participating in the project “It’s been really good for me because its reawakened things in my memory that I have enjoyed so much” she went on to say that it was so nice to remember things

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that she had forgotten about. I thanked her for her contributions and said how nice it has been to work with her. Ava then asked me when I would return to see her again and I said after the project. Ava’s affect: calm, cooperative, motivated, interested, relaxed Note: I did not ask her to fill out the questionnaire after the session as I felt that the statement she said was so authenetic and that the questionnaire would have been repeative and not productive. Observation: I am not sure if it was too overwhelming to have so many choices to choose from. January 3rd 2013 I met with prospective participant at her home and after signing a consent, we commenced the first of two art therapy sessions. I have booked the second art therapy session with her for January 10th 2013 at her home at 10 in the morning. Observation: The child in the bed picture has been a very popular image for participants to create a story about. This will be the third participant who has chosen it from the pile. Observation: Depending upon whether the participant is participating in reminiscence of sorts, I will ask for the names of the family. Since, asking for the names of family can seem like a test, I did not ask for them. If the story appeared to be based on fantasy or unrelated to the participants own life, I have asked for the names and or if I know there is a small family that does not require listing off several names as in the case of this participant’s family. Observation: Loved ones are so important to the way the lifeworld of a person with memory loss goes about in living out their day. There is such a delicate balance between allowing the person to choose what they can and embracing them to ensure they are in a safe space when they feel lost. Observation: This participant’s acceptance of who she is as a person with memory loss allows her to go on with her day- she admits to not being able to find the correct word or needing help to spell her last name but instead of dwelling upon these facts,

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she simply asks for help and she is not afraid to challenge herself as in the case of practicing the writing of her last name. What might I see? Where: It would be in my bed because I obviously had it to myself When: Before I got to go to school Who: Elaine What is happening: This is me. I’m in here reading and I read before I went to school and this seems to be a place where I can go to What is she holding in her lap: I think its something I was reading What do you want to say she is reading: It would be a story What is the story about: could be in the far away East or way West. It’s not just in Canada. I would love to be here at this place at some point in time What is she thinking right now: Likely where I might be at some point in time. I don’t want to stay there. I just want to see other parts of the world. Does she have a family: Oh yes. Mom and dad and four brothers at this point in time Does she have any pets: a dog What happened before this moment: My four brothers and I had things to do. We were busy. The boys all went to where the cattle were at the barn and I would have made stuff for us to eat What happens after this moment: Spend time with mom What does she want more than anything right now: Another girl! What do you want her to grow up to be: a teacher Session Notes I came into the home and Elle and her partner welcomed me in and she said good to see you. I said the same and how wonderful she looked. She offered that we go downstairs because it was warmer. We went downstairs and she briefly showed me and talked about the photos up on the wall- who is who. She then showed me a picture of her grandchildren and how lucky she is to have them. I sat down at the table with her and I asked if she wanted to start or if she wanted to wait for Alvin. She said she wanted to wait for partner because she depends on him so much. Her partner soon after joined us and I started to explain the project as per the outline I created for a previous participant. This included explaining the project, the benefits, risks, and confidentiality, right to decline, time commitment and reason for the project as well as an example of what the project might look like. At this point, Elle said that she wasn’t sure it was something she wanted to do since she did not think she could offer anything to the project. I expressed that I felt she had a lot to offer to the project and that anything would be accepted. Elle then said that she just did not think she could draw out the image I showed her and so I explained that I would present her with images and that we could create a story around it and that I did not expect her to re create the image I placed in front of her. Still hesitating, I said while I would love to have her I did not want to push her into anything she did not want to do. I said I thought I would come and ask since she had participated in the art therapy group I ran last year at the art gallery. She said she

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enjoyed talking and was not too good at the drawing. I said that anything would be accepted and that it was important for people in the community to recognize what sorts of life enriching activities might be helpful and that I myself was not an artist but that the importance lies in doing the activity itself, stimulation it may provide as well as doing something for an hour that may be interesting. I then also commented about the additional artworks would be supported and guided by myself and that I would provide templates to her to fill in. I gave the example from the story example I brought along and that dinner is mentioned and so I may bring a circle that looks like a plate and ask her to fill in what sorts of things the boy at for dinner. Elle said that if I thought she could contribute something she would do it. Her partner said that I think what Kirsten is saying is that anything you do will be accepted. Her partner encouraged Elle that it was her decision and while he would not be interested in something like that, she had done art already in the group and obviously Kirsten saw that having you in the project would be advantageous. Elle said ok then, what do you think to her partner and her partner said it is up to her. Elle said she would participate. A brief discussion emerged before signing the consent about how she was asked to do a newspaper interview for the Toronto Star or the Globe and she declined saying this is not for me because she was afraid they would twist her words. She based this decision on her ‘gut’ as well as upon a newspaper article that talked about Russian hockey players and the town of Shelborne not wanting them for some reason, which she believed was not true. She said I know I would not do that to her but it was something she did not want to do- meaning the interview over the phone. She did not know what they would do with her words. I explained that as an ethical social worker I would not put things down that she did nto say and that the method I would use with her required that I re read her answers back to her to ensure they are correct. Consent signing: Elle admitted that she is not able to read so her partner read over the consent and signed on her behalf. I asked her if she would like to start the session now or if she wanted to wait and she said she would start it now. Her partner was still present in the room and when we started the session and normally I would have asked all others to leave but because her partner presented as an empowering partner, I decided to see how things would go. I believe her partner is Elle’s safety and so asking him to leave may have brought the session to a halt. I presented the box of images and Elle went through them after I asked her to choose one that attracted her- she picked out three that she liked from the others and then by herself chose one- the one with the child in the bed. Observation: The child in the bed picture has been a very popular image for participants to create a story about. This will be the third participant who has chosen it from the pile.

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I asked Elle the following questions about the image she held in her hand. After two or three questions, her partner got up and left the room for the remainder of the story. The questions I asked included the following: What do you want to say is going on here Who is this What is she holding in her lap What is she reading What is the story about When does this take place Where does it take place Does she have a family Do you want her to have any pets What does she want more than anything in the world right now What happened before this moment What happened after this moment What is she thinking What do you want her to grow up to be What is the title of the story Observation: Depending upon whether the participant is participating in reminiscence of sorts, I will ask for the names of the family. Since, asking for the names of family can seem like a test, I did not ask for them. If the story appeared to be based on fantasy or unrelated to the participants own life, I have asked for the names and or if I know there is a small family that does not require listing off several names as in the case of Elle’s family. As per the Timeslips method, I repeated her answers and re read the story after every few questions. When I asked her if she wanted me to re read the story one last time, she brought her partner down to listen as well. Before reading the story, a discussion emerged about how Elle was in the Alzheimer Society news and she got the article out for me to see- it was about her story of being diagnosed and the last 10 years of living with Alzheimer’s. I brought attention to the fact that it is so important to ensure the narratives of people who struggle with memory loss are included in research. I also said I would have to get a copy and read the whole thing as it was two pages single-spaced. After I re read the story I said now it was time to get the canvas out. Her partner left again at this time and I brought out the canvas and the paints and put the image onto the canvas. I explained that the story would go on the bottom and that I would have it ready for the next session. At this time, Elle said the following which I said I would write down: “I am glad you convinced me to go on”

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Elle took her time in deciding which paint to use as she said she did not know which one went the best. She looked at the pink so I undid the cap and put some in the palette. She hummed and thought about it and so I put some on a spare piece of paper with the brush to show her how it went on. She looked at the image and the paint sample and back again a few times and asked if I thought the colour went or not- I said it was up to her and that anything was ok with me. A minute or two passed and Elle was still looking at it and so I poured some of the other paints into the palette- all but the brown, black and white. So that she could see what the colours looked like. She took the image and placed it above the palette to see what colours went with the image. She sampled the green and then called Alvin back down and asked him which one he thought she should paint onto the canvas. Her partner said whatever one she liked and that there was no right or wrong answer. Elle went back and fourth with the image on the different paint samples and asked her partner again if he thought the green was better or if it was too dark. I said that we could lighten it up by adding white to it. Her partner said I guess so and that if she wanted she could lighten it up with the white as I had suggested and without a moment Elle said ok to the green and she began to put the green onto the canvas. With a smile, Elle painted the top of the canvas and she began to make half moon strokes – a textured look emerged and she said she liked it like this because the straight lines she did were not straight so this is better. Elle continued to colour the entire canvas with the green colour. She briefly talked about her family during this time – how some of them had cancer and died and how her sister now has cancer. She then began to talk about her grand daughter and could not remember what she was studying and she said this is a part of it- that she cannot find the correct word. She asked her partner and he came out from what he was doing and said oh she will be a doctor. Ellethen commented on what this granddaughter was doing out in Halifax and her partner joined in here and there. After it was done, I put the image on top of the canvas without touching it to show her how it would look and she smiled and said good. Before leaving I asked her to sign a permission slip about using her name in the art display since she decided to call the person in the image herself- Elle as well as taking photographs of her work to put into the paper I will be writing. Elle said ok and I went through the permission with her and she checked off that she would agree to both things and then she signed her own first name. After that she said oh I need help with my last name so her partner got out the pad of paper and he wrote Stewart down and she took her time to practice writing it. After a few times she finally decided to put it onto the permission consent form and then said oh I did it wrong. Her partner said oh well we would just change it. Ellee laughed and said now he is the one who has to help me and not the other way around. Observation: Loved ones are so important to the way the lifeworld of a person with memory loss goes about in living out their day. There is such a delicate balance between allowing the person to choose what they can and embracing them to ensure they are in a safe space when they feel lost.

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Elle’s acceptance of who she is as a person with memory loss allows her to go on with her day- she admits to not being able to find the correct word or needing help to spell her last name but instead of dwelling upon these facts, she simply asks for help and she is not afraid to challenge herself as in the case of practicing the writing of her last name. I thanked her for her time and story and we booked a time for the next session. January 4th 2013 I contacted prospective participant as per referral from another participant’s partner who stated that his brother’s partner has memory loss. I confirmed with the participant’s loved one that she has memory loss and they are in the process of getting an appointment with the Alzheimer Society to see what sort of help they can receive. I explained to the prospective participant’s partner about the project and booked a time to see both of them on January 21st 2013. January 7 2013 I met with Cole and completed the second art therapy session with him at his home. I also got his caregiver to sign the permission form for me to take photographs of his artwork. I arrived and Cole met me at the door and welcomed me in. I saw his partner and we briefly talked about Christmas while Cole stood with us. I then sat with Cole at the kitchen table and his partner left the room. I moved some candles so we had more room to spread the art materials out. I brought out the canvas he painted during the first session as well as the image and the story ready to be pasted to a second canvas I had brought. I first identified that he had created these pieces and that this is the copy of his creative story he created during the last session. I then asked if he would like me to re read the story and then have him place the image and story onto the canvas. Cole said the girl is ill and after I re read the story, he said it was sad and not happy. I pointed out that he wanted the girl to run around and that for her to have fun. He said well ok but she is ill. I asked him if he wanted to put the image and story onto the canvas and he said yes but did not touch the image or story so I turned it over and said we have to peel the tape off the back and put it on. Cole said what an ugly colour (the tape- it was a brown yellow tone) I said ok, this is the tape. I turned the story piece over and asked him if he wanted to place it on the canvas and he said ok. He grabbed it carefully and together we placed it onto the canvas. We did the same for the image. Cole then looked at his original art piece and said what is that? I don’t know what this is and later he commented that green is a positive colour. I placed the canvases side by side to show him how they go up in the display. He shook his head and said yeah ok. The order I put them in was to have the green art piece to the left and the image and story to the right.

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Cole commented about the girl or boy being ill and then I brought out some templates of houses for him to fill in as, I said to him, he talked about the girl going back to the place where she lives in the story. Cole looked at the templates and said oh but its empty. He did choose one that was an outline of the house and he commented about the chimney being different. There needs to be a mother and father, he said. I said ok and I brought out the collage box of images of people for him to look at. I asked if he wanted to find ones that are happy and he said well yes. I helped him sift through the box to look for happy images of people to represent mother and father. Cole chose a few images. He then talked about how walking makes him happy. The images he choose included 2 pictures of couples walking together 1 picture of a man and woman on a boat 1 picture of a young girl holding a cup in her hand 1 picture of a girl smiling Cole said this combination is harmonious. I attempted to get Cole to create a collage out of the images he had chosen by saying we could glue them down on this paper. Cole did not respond to this request by taking glue but by commenting on the images, that they looked harmonious, that the girl was so beautiful looking and that this was definitely the father-the image of the woman and man on the boat. During this time, I responded with yes or ok and repeated what he had said to me. I did show Cole that he could turn the images over and glue the back of them and turn them over and he did take the glue and put a few dabs on the back of the one image, however, after I turned it over, Nick was not interested in doing a collage, only to talk about the images ie. That the couple is walking together fast, and how he likes walking from this to the end of his town. Noticing that the participant was not interested in doing collage, I go tout some paper with markers and asked if he wanted to create an art piece. Cole responded by talking about liking music and how music makes him happy and life would be nasty if he did not have it in his life. I said maybe he could create something about music on the paper. He was interested in telling me that he loves music because it is here and then it is gone. He said he loves Mozart and he can sing melodies while walking outside and he can make them up to, different ones each day. Cole then began to whistle. When the Saints come marching in. It almost brought tears to my eyes. I was so moved by his piece. I clapped after he finished and he continued on with more tunes I did not necessarily recognize. I said it may be interesting to have his whistling playing in the background with the art display and he said well yeah and then he whistled another couple of other tunes, one of which he does in Church. We ended the session with me thanking him for his time and whistling and that I would love to come and record his whistling and he said ok. I then asking his partner if this was a good idea and at this moment, a friend knocked on the door and came and spoke with his partner in the other room. Afterwards his partner confirmed that this would be a good idea and that Nick can also play piano and that he whistles all the time in Church and he can hear something once and whistle it.

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I booked to see them later on this same day as I did not want to leave too much time- I wanted to keep the momentum going. His partner asked Cole if this would be ok and he said well yeah and then his partner complimented Cole on his talents and then Nick smiled and said no and his partner said yes, you have a gift. Note: I wanted to record the whistling since Nick expressed music is happiness and Happiness is the name of the story that he gave it. Later on this day at 1:00 pm I entered the home and his partner told me Cole was in the other room on the couch resting for a few minutes. She told me that Cole is very sick – that his kidneys are shutting down, he has 3 aneurisms and that he has high blood pressure. She told me about a recent hospital trip he had to take because he felt dizzy and how they sent him home even though they wanted to keep him there. They just did not have enough beds. She also talked about how he does not seem to be in pain either. After this his partner went and got Cole and he said he would see me. Again we sat at the kitchen table- Cole took a seat in a comfy chair and I said across from him at the kitchen table. I brought out his pieces he had completed thus far and I asked if I could record his whistling and he said ok. I pressed record and for the next 8.5 minutes, Cole whistled with little second breaks in between. It was incredible to hear him whistle for this long period of time. I then played it back for him to hear and he smiled and put his head down and then he tried to follow along with his own whistling. I said I would provide him with a cd of his whistling and that I would use it for the art display as well. He smiled. He then talked about how he got it from his father as his father was talented musically. His partner came into the room and I commented on how he went for 8 minutes without stopping and how incredible this was. His partner smiled and said how gifted he was. He then sang her a song and I could tell it was for her because they were looking right at one another and he raised his hands every so often and it was like he was telling her something with his whistling song- it was a love song. His partner said you must have been a bird in your previous life. Cole talked about how he got it from his father and then he whistled a lullaby as Jhis partner started to talk about how important is to sing to children. Cole said that it just puts children to sleep and then he said a few words in German – that the children will go to bed and God will wake them when he is ready. I thanked Cole and his partner once again for having me into their home and his partner said they look forward to coming to the art display. I said oh yes. His partner gave me a homemade magnet with their number on the back of it and I took it and thanked them for it.

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I got his partner to sign a consent to give me permission to take photographs of the pieces and use them. She asked Cole if this was alright and he said yes. Note: I did not get Cole to fill out a questionnaire at the end of the session. Observation: I noticed that artistic abilities span beyond the page and on this day, I was able to record a participant’s whistling and this will be included in the art display along with his other pieces. Observation: The participant picked out some collage images but did not arrange them onto the page. I am faced with an interesting dilemma of trying to figure out how to display the images without making them into something different that is not his but my own. Maybe I put them into a picture frame. January 9 2013 I met with Cara and completed the second art therapy session. I also got permission to have identifying information and or name(S) to her artwork as well as being able to take photographs of the art pieces for educational purposes. Session – January 9 2013 at Hazel’s home at kitchen table. I arrived and Cara welcomed me in and I met her son who was sitting on the sofa. She said he and her husband were going out. Cara took me into the kitchen and we sat down. I pulled out the canvas she had painted as well as the image and the story. I told her briefly that the contractor tape seemed to work the best so I had put it on the back. She placed the image onto the canvas and pat it down. I said we’ll just have to take the back of the tape off and she said oh. I took the tape off while she was reading the story. She commented about how old her daughter is now and that the dog mentioned in the story was actually named something different. I just held the image up while she was talking, as it was sticky on the back. I showed her that the image was ready to put on and she took it and put the image down and measured it to make sure it was level and straight. I then took the tape off the story piece and she put it onto the canvas. She held it up herself and smiled and then got up and held it up on the wall and sat it down onto the chair. She then asked so what do we do now. I said well there are a few options. I said that in her story she mentioned Lori the girl had a lot of art. I showed her the template I had done up with various different squares on it on canvas and I said she could fill these in like they were art pieces and or she could paint something else on a blank canvas and or she could create a collage or anything she liked. I did not get a response with the art template I made up and she then took me around to see her different art pieces she has done in the living room and dining room. I admired the pieces and she talked about a piece she did in the dining room and how she completed it. We then sat back down and she asked so what are we going to do. I said well she could look through some collage images and then glue them down onto

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the page. She said ok. When she first looked into the boxes, she said something about having to paint the images. I clarified and said she did not have to pick and image and paint it and she said oh good with her eyes wide open. I realized that maybe she was not up to painting at this moment so I focused attention towards creating a collage. We spent the rest of the time picking out images and I provided her with different backgrounds to choose from- black, cream or white. During this time she spoke about her family- her granddaughter and how sometimes come to her and then they are gone. She chose images of children doing activities and later added a picture of two parents. She said the girl with the kite was Lori. She did not name the other images with specific names. Upon reflection I should have asked her more about the collage After choosing the images of a) a boy swinging from a tire b) a girl with a kite c) a father holding up a boy in the air d) two ‘parents’ overlooking something She cut the corners and shaved off some of the pictures to make them fit. She told that I needed to do a better job at cutting them before hand. Later I complimented her on the way she cut the corners and she said it was an accident but sometimes these are the best things that can happen. A few times throughout this process she commented on how she saw herself as playing with pictures and being like a ten year old. I echoed her comment by saying a ten year old and then she said it is hard to be and then I did not hear her. She asked for my reassurance if the piece looked alright and I said is it how you want to be and she shrugged. She used the glue to put the images onto the page (black colour) and upon placing the first one down- the boy on the tire, she took it off and cut some of it off. She then went to put on another image she had not placed onto the collage before as the image of the parents was flipped over ready for her to glue before she focused her attention upon cutting more of the edges of the boy on the tire. I said I think you also had this image in that spot as well- what are you thinking you’d like to do with it- she said oh the parents one. I said it is a question of whether to say something to someone or not about these things and said well I would have pulled it off anyways. I echoed this by saying we do come up with our own solutions and she said yes it is good for us to do so.

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Upon reflection I don’t think I would have said anything to her but this time I did and I am not sure why. I think because she specifically set out the images in a certain way before turning it over so I knew what she had wanted to put on it at that time. After the collage was complete I held it up to her and then I took the canvas and put beside it and asked her how she wanted it displayed in the gallery. She told me and I wrote this down. She then commented that what we were really doing was not necessarily artwork and that she just painted a background and looked at pictures. I said it is creative expression and she said well I guess it is art – it is a part of it. I agreed with her. I did get her to sign a consent for me to have permission to use the name of her daughter in the artwork as well as to take photographs of it for educational purposes. I then gave her the questionnaire to fill out and she took her time with this. I did not want to put pressure upon her so I said she did not have to answer all the questions if she did not want to and it took a period of time before she answered them but she did it herself, with her own words and writing and she wrote a long piece about experience. I definitely appreciated this and thanked her for her time and energy. She told me good luck and I said I would connect with her for the art display. Affect: calm, cooperative, motivated, interested, smiling, curious, and insightful January 10 2013

1. I received an email from Jennifer advising the following: “a spouse of a

client involved with your project came to my support group and shared the “story” he created … she was so touched and kept positive saying how much more is inside these people that we can’t forget about” (email). 2. I met with Elle and completed the second art therapy session. Session January 10 2013 Elle welcomed me into her home with a smile and asked how I was doing. I said good and I complimented her on her blue colour of her shirt. We went downstairs and spoke briefly about her family photos on the wall and what an awesome display it is. Elle said she always finds it interesting that the younger children get up on the couch and look up at them. After this discussion, we sat down at the table and I pulled out the canvas, the image and the story. Elle said how much she liked the

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way the canvas turned out. I placed the image and the story on top and she smiled and said oh my, that is great. She brought her partner into the room. I got him to photocopy the story as I had forgot to do this so Elle had a copy of the story for herself. She said she never thought she would do something like this but she is glad I encouraged her in doing so. I asked her if she wanted to pull the tape off the back or if she wanted me to and she said she preferred I do it. I pulled the tape off and she placed both the image and story on the canvas. She admired it as she held it up and shook her head saying wow, how great. I then read the story to her and she was happy with it and said she cannot wait to show it to her mom and what she had done. She also commented her kids would like to see this. I then introduced Elle to a few different directives. 1. fill in the plate with food- I showed her a page with an outline of a plate on it 2. paint the spoon- I showed her a wooden spoon 3. Create a post card- I showed her an empty postcard and an example I had done as well as zip lock bags of collage images I explained how each of the templates related back to her story and that she could do something else if she wanted. She said there are so many options to choose from. Observation: did I present her with too many directives? It looked like she was overwhelmed by the choices. I went through the directives again and she said there was a lot to choose from., She then looked at the bag full of travel images and stickers and I said would you like to take a look and so she went through them. I moved the other templates aside to reduce the clutter in front of her. She commented on some of the images- It looks like some place where we went. We’ve been there before. She chose a couple of images. One of a palm tree and one of a painting with various in it. It was too big to fit on a postcard so I offered bigger paper. She then said oh- I am not sure what to do. I said we could start by picking out a size of paper. She chose the post card sixe one. Now we can pick out the images to go onto the post card and then glue them on. I showed her the action of gluing them onto the postcard. She then laid eyes on the stickers of shells, palms, flamingos, life saver, boat, postage stamps, postcards. She began taking the stickers and carefully placed them onto the card. She put the palm tree, a flamingo, sail boat, shells, postage stamps of shells, post cards onto the postcard. She then said she needed something to go in the middle and she looked through the stickers again. I offered she could look through some of the images or use a colour to fill it in. She continued to contemplate and said again she needed something in the middle. I asked if she felt like it needed to be a colour or an object and she said object. I brought out the images of flowers for her to look through and she picked some but said it was too big. I said she could cut it. She chose some flowers and carefully cut it to her liking. She then placed these in the corner of the postcard. She placed them under the stickers- they were not stuck down all the way and then she glued them as well. She then said I still need something in the middle and so I offered the pastels, markers

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and water colours. She said well maybe colour would be ok. She did not know which media to use so I showed her how the pastel went onto a scrap piece of paper. She then used the same pastel I took out- the grey, and she carefully made swirls and wavy lines lightly onto the post card. I held it up for her when she was done and she said does this look ok. Is that enough? She also said someone else would look at it and say what is it. I said well you don’t have to answer to anyone and she said that’s right. I held up the two art pieces side by side and she said oh I did not know they would be put together. She liked the postcard to go on the left of the canvas. I thanked her and got her to fill out the questionnaire. I wrote the words she said. I said I would connect with her about the display. Affect: Interested, motivated, relaxed, cooperative, happy, proud. Observation: I wonder if I am directing the sessions too much! In writing this session up, I realized how often I said something or directed something. Where does one draw the line? Comment made by participant: She said she never thought she would do something like this but she is glad I encouraged her in doing so. Observation: did I present her with too many directives? It looked like she was overwhelmed by the choices. January 20 2013 I met with prospective participant and she agreed to participate and so we commenced the first of two art therapy sessions. She signed both consents during the session.

Man’s Best Friend What do you want to say is happening: He is on his own and he somehow got away from the owner. Does the shoe remind him of something? Does the shoe remind him of a human being he knew? He obviously seems to take possession of it. Both feet are on the shoe. When: His owner is shopping and hasn’t noticed that he has taken off. Where: A huge shoe store and it looks like he has sampled a few here. It’s very obvious that this one must be his favourite. What do you want to call him: Boefie or Rascal in Dutch. How old is he: He has a mature little head and the way he holds his head, it’s like a question mark- now what?

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Does he belong to anyone: He’s lost and somebody wonderful will find him. What kind of life has he led: An active life. He has such a wise little head and now he’s obviously concentrating on what to do. What do you want him to do: I want him to find his master. Is he looking at anyone: A young boy or girl or elderly. He’s got such an incredibly cute head. What do you want to happen next: I would like him to meet a young boy who loves dogs, a boy who really needs a friend and what better friend than the dog. Sev’s house. I went to the house and Sev opened the door and smiled at me. I said hello and said I am Kirsten. She welcomed me in. She asked if my name was Scandinavian and I said yes and we briefly talked about my European heritage. I said I was Danish and Swiss and she talked about how she went to Switzerland and believe it or not she stayed in the same part of Switzerland that my father was born in. Amazing she said. We came into her house and I sat at the kitchen table. After talking about the snow and how nice and beautiful it was outside, I offered that I would like her to participate in a project. Sev said that another participant enjoyed it very much. Sev offered me something to drink. I said what ever she is drinking is fine. She said she would make Japanese twig tea. She put the water onto the stove. And sat down with me. I explained the project to her as per my prepared speech about it. She said how interesting this was and what a profession. She said that she would like to get back writing again. She said it would be good for her. She said she would have to think about it because she would have to have some time to come up with a story to write. I clarified and said I had the questions to ask her with me and that the story could flow from the questions. She said oh ok. I got the consents out and placed them in front of her. I went over the title as she asked about it and I acknowledged that the project was for persons with memory loss. She admitted to having memory loss and then she went on to tell me a story about her son and that she thought Canada was such a safe place to live in compared to growing up in the war in Holland. She said she was wrong. She said he was doing better now but that she needed to

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smarten up about it. I said smarten up? She said that her son said shit happens and then she talked about she needed to move on and that she is getting better with it. I acknowledged this but also that it was important to honour her feelings and who she is. She was hesitant to sign since she said she would like to participate but there were other things going on at the moment. I acknowledged that this was ok. I now know that this meant she had not slept all night and that her husband had actually called to cancel the session unbeknownst to me- as I did not check my phone messages once I left my house this morning). I said ok. She said she would get back to me soon. I said ok and said that the sessions would take about an hour each. She then agreed to participate right then and there. She signed and then we got Hubert to witness it. The session- I placed the box of images in front of her and asked her to go through them and to pick out one she was attracted to. She chose several and then said so I need only one. I said yes, the one she feels most attracted to. She chose the dog with the shoe image and then she looked at the one with the child in the bed – which has been chosen by 3 participants during this project. It is amazing the effect this photo has upon people. I asked her the following questions about the image What do you want to say is happening here When do you want to say it is happening Where do you want to say it is happening What do you want to call him, how old is he Do you want him to belong to anyone What kind of life do you want the dog to have led What is he concentrating on Is there anyone else he is looking at What do you want to have happen next I re read the story every two or three questions and after reading it one more time she titled it. I got the canvas out and explained the next step for the session. I placed the image onto the canvas and explained that I would be typing up the story she created and we would place it onto the canvas during the next session. I explained that I wanted her to design the background for where the image and the story would go. She looked at the image closely and as she did so I got the paints out and the

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parchment paper to put underneath. I also got the brushes out. I had to ask for a cup of water and Kleenex in case she wanted to dip the brush into another colour. She looked at the colours and did not comment. I named the colours off to her. She said something about green so as a way to encourage her; I squirted the green paint into the palette. She then took the image and put against some of the paints. She said she liked the red. I poured some into the palette. Noticing she was hesitating, I said lets try it out on a piece of paper so I dipped the brush in and did a stroke so she could see the actual colour. She placed the image next to the stroke and said yeah ok. She then said ok now what do I do. I said she could dip the paintbrush into the paint and put it onto the canvas and fill in the background. She said ok. She started with the outside of the canvas making short strokes up and down on each side of the canvas. She said you must be very patient. I said I loved to watch others paint as I found it soothing. Observation: one must be careful at how they look at others and how they do art. It can put some people off I would image. She then said something about orange. I said we could make orange and she said ok. I put the red and the yellow into the same area and said she could stir it around to see what would happen. She did and said the red is very strong. I asked if I should add more yellow and she said yes. I did and it was still too strong so I asked if we should add white and she said yes so I did. She said this softens it up. She stirred it around and I gave her the sheet with the red stroke on it to see if she liked the orange she created. She said yes and then she put the image against to it to check it out. She then did an orange line on each of the sides of the canvas and put the image in the middle and then said ok do I do some more red. I said she could and I said we would put the story on the bottom of the canvas. This meant she moved up the image and so she said she would do it orange then. She continued to paint the canvas orange and she had the image in the place where she wanted it to go and painted around it carefully. She said she liked the contrast of the colours. I held it up for her with my finger on the image to hold it in place. She smiled and said yes she liked it. I thanked her for her participation with the art and creative story. I then gave her the questionnaire to fill out and then she asked how much it cost for the session. I said it was free. She said she definitely wanted to do more of this and it was good for her. I said that

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was great since I was coming back to do more art with her. I got her to sign the permission consent form about using identifying info and photographing it and we brought Hubert into the room to witness it after he asked her again if this was ok. Hubert then explained how he had left a message on my home phone saying she was not feeling well as she had not slept all night. I apologized and said I came straight from another appointment and so I did not go home before hand. Sev said that is was fine and it actually perked her up. I said I was glad to hear the session was ok for her and I especially thanked her for her participation. She talked about wanting to be creative and she wanted to do more of it. WE booked a second session for this Friday. Hubert gave me a box to the put art piece in as it was snowing pretty hard out. Affect: interested, motivated, hesitant at times, happy, calm, relaxed, comfortable, smiling

January 25 2013 I commenced the second art therapy session with Sev at her home.

Sev answered the door and came out to greet me. I went in and met her daughter quickly who then left the room. Her daughter came back into the room and gave her mother a box- Sev opened the box and showed me at least 20 different Smurf figurines that her daughter used to play with. She took some out and showed me and I commented on how awesome this was to still have them. After this, the daughter left again and Sev closed the box and put it aside. I then brought out the canvas, the image and the story. I placed the image and the story onto the canvas and advised that I had put double-sided tape on it so we could tape it onto the canvas. I let her admire it for a few seconds before flipping the image and story over to show her what I meant. I encouraged her to take the tape off and she did- taking her time and with patience. She flipped the image back over and I pointed to where it would go. She placed it onto the canvas. I then said now we can do the story. I flipped it over and she began to take the tape off. After taking the tape off she went to hand it to me so I turned it over and said and now the story goes somewhere in here. I handed it back to her and she placed it onto the canvas. Next I held up the canvas for her to see from a

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distance. She smiled and said yes. Then I said lets read the story. I read the story as well as providing her with her own copy. I commented on how she created it and she said well with some help. I said the answers are all hers. I said we could now create some more art if she wanted to around the story. I brought out the templates I made up- one of a store front to represent the huge shoe store she talked about in the story as well as a pair of stiletto heels she could fill in. She looked at both and then back at the story and image. She did ask if she had mentioned a window in her story as the template had a window. I let her look at the templates while I brought the paints, markers and pastels onto the table. After sitting for a few minutes, she got up to clean her nose and came back to sit down. She looked at it and not saying anything, I said I also have images to look at as well. I brought the images of young boys and shoes out as well as the box full of images. She looked through the images and commented on how nice they were. She especially looked at a horse image with three horses and three black foals standing beside them. She commented on how great this picture was and how perfect it was. She then went on to tell me a story about how a plane was so low one day while she was riding her horse out in the field that she spooked and she got hurt but her daughter did not. She then picked up the images with animals in them. She went through and commented on a lot of images- how cute, adorable, incredible they were. She also kept saying what would we do without animals. They are so special. She also commented that she had always had animals when the kids were growing up and that this is important to do so. She put the images into some different piles around the table and she went through them again. I said that she could create a collage of images and put them onto the paper. I held up the paper. She said oh ok. She went through the images again, saying Man’s best friend. She picked out the ones that had a person with a dog in them and separated them. She then picked out some images that had two animals in them. Like friends, companions, there is a lot of love and innocence she said. She also commented that there is no race difference- between a black sheep and white sheep image. She choose a dog and cat looking up at something, two kittens, two birds on a branch, a chick with arms out – which to her was a little unrecognizable – she did not know what it was at some points during the session. She organized these images onto a page and then turned her attention elsewhere. She said ok and picked up a picture of a dog with a woman kneeling down. I got out another piece of paper and she

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used it to place the image onto the paper. She looked at it and said how incredible it was, the face of the dog, how they are connected and how it is woman’s best friend. After some more talk about the connection between animals and humans, as well as another look at the horse picture and how we cannot live without them, I encouraged her to glue the image onto the page. She did so and then spent time looking at it and making comments about how the two in the picture are so connected and how right the picture looked all by itself. Sev decided she did not want to put anything else with the image and so I held up the image piece with the story canvas and asked her where she wanted it on the display. She said below the display as it talks about man’s best friend. She then mentioned something about how her eyes are different colours. I said I had noticed right away and how unique this is. She said some people don’t notice for a long time. She then went through some other animal images and commented on how they have their own personalities. She also commented on how wonderful a profession this was and how special it is for me to be doing this. I thanked her for this. I also thanked her for appreciating the images I had cut out as well. I asked her if she wanted to glue the images down that lay on the page she had earlier created. She said yes and she took her time placing the images onto the page and gluing them, checking to see which ones she had glued down and then she asked for a piece of paper so that glue would not get onto the page. I provided her with this. Throughout this process, she got up a few times and cleaned her nose and she glanced at her story and the image. She also looked at a picture of a bird on a branch that she did not use but to her it also had a cat in it but it was hard to tell. She had transformed the moss on the tree into a creature that was sitting beside the bird- she decided not to use it because it was hard to tell what type of creature it was. After more gluing, she had finished the collage with animals that were friends- companions, who had love and innocence. I held up the piece and made from on the table to display both pieces along with the canvas to make sure I got the right way she wanted it to be displayed at the gallery. She wanted the second collage to be displayed to the right of the canvas. After this she commented on how great of a profession this is and how it helps people with disease because it lets them get outside themselves. She talked about the importance of creativity for children and that of

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elders as well. I pulled out the image of the horse and said she could have it since she appreciated it so much. She said yes thanks. I presented her with the questionnaire and she marked the face she felt was representative of the session and then she said the following. The face would say: it feels good inside. All the way .An other nice world to go to. What would you tell others: It’s a wonderful experience. We don’t do enough of that. I thanked her and gave her a copy of her consents and before I left we talked about spirituality and dogs- what would we really do without them or without animals. We then talked about children and the TV and how it is no good for them and how encouraging creativity is so important. I thanked her again and she said the same to me and I left. Her partner called me later on and said that Sev did not want her name displayed with her artwork and I said that I would not do this and I had worded the consent wrong. I asked if it was ok to have identifying information such as the fact that she said something in Dutch in the story and he said this was fine. I apologized for this and he said this is fine. Observation: This participant is someone who has not been formally diagnosed with dementia however I could see how creating a collage could be used as an assessment tool for professionals to figure out how someone processes the task of picking out and organizing and completing a collage piece. Comments made by participant: She commented on how wonderful a profession this was and how special it is for me to be doing this. She later said how it helps people with disease because it lets them get outside themselves. She talked about the importance of creativity for children and that of elders as well. Observation: The consent I had persons with memory loss sign asks permission to have their names displayed with their artwork when it should have read name and or identifying information. This was confusing to this participant who was alright

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with having some identifying characteristics but not with her name being displayed with the art work which I would not have down anyways. January 28 2013 January has been identified in Canada as Alzheimer Awareness Month and this year Alzheimer Society Canada launched a nation-wide awareness campaign called “See Me, not my disease. Let’s talk about Dementia” (Alzheimer Society Canada, 2013). The focus of the campaign is upon dispelling myths, reducing stigma associated with having dementia and changing perceptions and attitudes towards those living with the disease (Alzheimer Society Cananda, 2013). A series of short video clips headlines the Alzheimer Society Cananda’s website, featuring none other than those who have been diagnosed with dementia as well as their caregivers. In fact, two of my participants are featured which is one of the most exciting things I have watched thus far. TV commericals focusing upon reducing stigma has also been rolled out, which also feature persons with dementia talking about what and who they are. My personal favourite is a man who looks to be in his seventies who simply says I have Alzheimer’s but Alzheimer’s doesn’t have me. The theme for this year’s awareness could not be more in tune with the major project I have chosen to taken on. The creation of a subversive dialogue starts with a reworking of how we talk and relate to people with dementia. Acknowledging that people are not the disease they have been diagnosed with is crucial for the affirmation of personhood. After taking the on line quiz testing my attitude towards dementia on the Alzheimer Society Cananda website, I identified something that is troubling. I have flipped back and fourth between naming dementia for what it is or using the term memory loss. The stigma associated with the word dementia is quite negative and in an attempt to encourage participants all my consents state persons with memory loss. However as pointed out in the quiz, dementia is more than memory loss. The changes in personality and behavior are also apart of what makes up the disease. My discomfort with the word dementia also stems from an understanding at the Society itself, that dementia is not to be used when in conversation with someone who has it. At the same time, the Exe Dir recently commented to me that we need to start naming it for what it is: Dementia. The press release that I have put together uses both terms memory loss and dementia, but more frequently the term memory loss is used. The TimeSlips speech I have put together also relies on the term memory loss out of respect for caregivers whose loved ones are in the project as well. I am truly conflicted about the naming of this condition. Since language is not neutral and is socially constructed, the terms that are used can affect the way personhood is validated. January 29 2013 1. I provided Kim S and Deborah with an outline of the project and the display. I have also come up with an invitation for them to circulate. The invitation features information about the display as well as a piece of artwork I created on this day

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regarding an interpretation of the project. It was definitely fun to create something of my own in response to this project as I have been busily working away at supporting others in the creation of their artworks. 2. I spoke with a participant about placing his partner in the day away program during the time of the art therapy session as there may be space for her on Feb 26th. Participant stated that his partner is looking forward to coming to Owen Sound and that he would play it by year. 3. I emailed Helene about the rights around the article I had published and to see if there was a way to establish a link between my invitation and or information about my project and the article I wrote. Helene has informed I need to speak with CATAJ about this as they have the copyright rights to this article. 4. I took pictures of all the art pieces created by persons with memory loss and I plan to print them out so that I have the correct placement of the pieces when the art display goes up. 5. I emailed Kim S about framing and if I am in charge of providing the framing for the pieces or if they are. This could save me a lot of money if they are responsible for framing however I am doubtful that this is the case. 6. I had an individual session with professional participant who could not attend the group session. Since Nicole is not able to make the two group sessions I am offering for the personal

and professional caregivers, I had arranged to meet with her to do the two sessions in one

sitting at the Alzheimer Society Grey Bruce.

I arrived and went to see Nicole at her door. She advised that there was more room in

another office so we went to this office. The office had a small coffee table that sat low

and a desk that did not accommodate a lot of room. I advised that we could do the first

part of the session in here but that if she wanted a higher working surface for the artistic

piece, we could go back to her office.

I had her sign both consents before proceeding. I said ok this session will be about

providing you with a sense of the process I went through with persons with memory loss

in their homes. I provided her with 3 images I had pre chosen and advised her that when

I completed this with the persons with memory loss, I had a box full of images. I advised

her to choose one that she felt attracted to and or liked and that we would be creating a

story from it. She was relieved to find out that I had structured questions to ask about the

image as she did not know what sort of story she would come up with. The following

story came as a result of her picking the image with a woman dancing.

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Celebration

Where: I think in a city at a celebration

When: probably in the afternoon

What time of year: September

What name: I’ll call her Lynda

What is she doing: I believe she’s dancing. Her body posture indicates that she’s

dancing.

What is she feeling: Happy. She’s enjoying herself.

Where is she from: She’s Canadian

What does she do for a living: I think she works in an office. I believe she’s a

professional

Did she come alone or with someone: I believe there’s family or friends in the crowd

What sounds to you hear: I hear band music

What is it like outside: I think the energy in the crowd is very happy and everybody is

enjoying themselves

What happens after this moment: I think Lynda goes back to meet with her family and

friends, whoever accompanied her and they are just laughing and enjoying the moment

I thanked Nicole for participating in this portion of the project and I asked her how it was

to create a story. Nicole said it is interesting and she was wondering if she was being

creative or imaginative enough. I asked if she would do it again and she said it would

depend on how engaged, creative and imaginative she felt.

I asked Nicole at this point if she wanted a break and she said no. I asked her if she

wanted to move upstairs where there was a bit more room for creation and she said no it

was fine here.

I then moved onto to showing her the stories and images that belonged to the stories from

persons with memory loss. Nicole read them over and laughed at some parts and asked

questions about other parts and or comments about the way the stories unfolded. After

reading the stories, I asked her to choose one story and to create an artistic piece about an

interesting part of the story and or something that grabbed her attention. Nicole took a

moment to flip through the stories and while she did this, I got out the paints and makrers

and paper. Nicole chose the Hawaiian based story called Our Hawaiian Holiday. Nicole

said she did not want to use paints and so I placed the markers on the table. She asked for

pencil crayons and I advised I did not have any but I did have oil pastels which I placed

on the table. She then asked what she was to do. I said she could create anything she

liked in response to the story. She said a tree and or a pathway and then she said a heart.

I encouraged to chose any of these ideas. She said her first thought was the heart so she

took the watercolour paper and on her lap, she took the pastels and made a heart shape

and then used the tan colour to make sand like squiggles and then an arrow through the

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heart. She asked if it was ok to use the names of the participants and I said yes as they are

mentioned in the story. She then wrote in tan pastel- Fred + Wynne. She smudged the

outline of the heart as well. She then mentioned she wanted to make shells but that she

did not know how. I offered the shell stickers I had left over from another participant.

She took some shell stickers and stuck them in various places on the piece. She then did

the water with a blue pastel with waves and said she hoped others could tell it was water.

I said yes and that I would ask for a description anyways. She said yes I guess you need

one to tell. I said well at the art gallery, descriptions are provided beside art pieces. She

agreed. After she finished I held it up for her and she smiled.

Description of piece: A heart written in the sand expressing their love for each other.

I then asked her the questions I had pre structured.

1. tell me about your experience of having to respond to the stories using art materials?

Very emotional and touching. When I read the stories it is as if I am looking for

…there’s something more behind what they have expressed in the story. Their own

personalities are coming out in the stories.

2. Tell me about your experience of having toe respond to the stories using art materials?

I didn’t find it too difficult to do. The story- It’s so affectionate, so much love. It’s a

happy moment that they shared together. By expressing it using a heart, I showed the

experience they shared.

3. Can you describe any changes in how you might view or relate to persons with

memory loss that you might attribute to the session?

Not really..then she said- It’s eye opening and reinforces that the person is still a person

with expressed feelings and emotions.

I thanked Nicole for her time and energy and she complimented me on going fourth with

the project and that she admired that I was doing this.

January 30 2013 1. I started and almost completed the write ups for each individual art piece and I worked on perfecting the invitation that will be sent out to agencies and the gallery. I also made photocopies of the invitation poster to provide to the hospital and other agencies I have yet to connect with. This will be my next task. 2. I had to call all personal caregivers to cancel today’s timeslips session due to road conditions. It is just too dangerous to have people out on the road today. I have now

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decided that I will include the timeslips session in with the second session that will be focused on picking and creating art from the creative stories that persons with memory loss came up with. Deborah is going to inform all the other participants about this change. 3. I readjusted the speech I came up with for today’s session so that I can still use it for the Feb 26th session. 4. I called the Framery in Owen Sound to ask about pricing as it has been confirmed that the art gallery does not do framing. Carol stated I would need to bring in some samples and that they could provide their best possible price to me. I went into the Framery and they advised that they could tape and wire the canvases for free and that they could put foam core on the rest of the art pieces as framing is just too expensive. She said I did not need to bring them until later but I feel the sooner the better. February 6 2013 1. I went to the Framery and dropped off all canvases and art pieces created thus far. I also got Carol to put a hook on the back of the corkboard that I will be using for one of the participants who picked out images but did not organize htem into a collage. 2. I confirmed with supervisor that having a follow up session with caregivers after the display would be helpful as well as having some designated persons from various community services attend to evaluate as well. On this day I emailed CCAC and Home and Community Support Services. I also left a voicemail with OT and Leisure for the Inpatient psychogeriatric Unit at Grey Bruce Health Services. I will also connect with Deborah about having someone who has not participated in the project, make an evaluation. I also need to connect with the Behavioural Supports Ontario team at Grey Bruce Health Services. I have yet to connect with any memory clinics. Here the message I have been giving people or thereabouts: My name is Kirsten Camartin and I am a social worker in the midst of completing my training to become an art therapist. I am currently working on a major project on the use of art therapy with persons with dementia, personal caregivers and professional caregivers in the dementia care field. As a part of this project, I am hosting an art display showcasing artistic pieces created by persons with dementia, personal caregivers and professional caregivers in the community. The art display will be held on March 16 at noon at the Tom Thomson art gallery. The reason for my call to you is two fold. First I would like to invite you and your staff to the event and second I am interested in having a designated staff person from your agency attend the display to specifically evaluate it. I would like to hear from community agencies that deal with dementia, regarding thoughts around the display and how it may or may not contributes to an understanding of who and what persons with dementia are capable of. This designated person would fill out a

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specialized questionnaire I would have ready for them, which they could mail, back to me and or email to me. 3. I also looked online to see about any cool ideas regarding guest books for people to sign. I have looked at one idea that has a book with envelopes glued inside and little notes laying on the table so that when they are done, they can put them into the envelopes. I think I will get a three ring paper binder. I also ordered a doctor bag as well as overalls for the display. I have alternately decided to do a normal guest book with pen. I want to keep things simple! 4. I also went to Staples and photocopied ten poster ads that I will distribute. February 7 2013 1. I dropped off the write ups for each of the art pieces to the Framery for them foam core. 2. I went and picked up a guest book and pens, invitations for the participants to come to the display as well as picking up the overalls. 3. I recruited an evaluator for the display and someone also called me back from the day away program and said she will try to see if she can get someone from the Owen Sound day away program to attend. I called Behavioural Supports Ontario and someone will attend the event to be an evaluator. I connected with a PSW who works at a home in Allenford and confirmed that she will attend and I have connected with two students in nursing who have experience in working with people with dementia to evaluate as well. They will inform me if they are coming sometime in the near future. 4. I called the Owen Sound Sun Times newspaper to see if they wanted to run a story on the display and the work I have been doing. I have sent the editor the information regarding the project as well as the display and the invitation. February 8 2013 1. I printed the invitations and got all addresses for participants and stamped them. I will send them out soon. 2. I received a call from one of the participants who has a conflicting event at the same time of the session on Feb 26th but she has decided to come to the session anyways as her mom is more important. Wow, what a beautiful way to show her devotion. 3. I asked Deborah about having someone from the agency come and evaluate the display and she advised she could have them go during the week. I then called David at the art gallery and got the times when people are allowed to look at the

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display. I would provide the agency with the questions form prior to their attendance at the display and have them fill it out after they have seen the display. I have sent the final evaluation form for professionals who are evaluating the project, to Beth for approval. 3. I also asked Deborah to provide me with a list of all the agencies and or people she has sent the poster ad to so I can write this down in the write up. List will be kept confidential but I did receive it. -Alzheimer Society Grey Bruce Support group e-mailing – 1, 072 people

February 11 2013

1. I emailed Tracey Richardson from the Sun Times as Deborah emailed her about doing

a story on the display. I also emailed Teresa from the Healthline.ca website to see if she

could post the invite on the website.

2. I dropped off invitation flyers around the grey bruce area and I mailed out the personal

invitations for the persons with dementia as well as the personal caregivers. I will

provide the professional caregivers with their invites later this week at the Society.

3. I worked on my booklet of information to give to guests at the display.

February 12 2013

1. I received a phone call from Native Friendship Centre in Owen Sound who would like

to take clients to the display. She will be there from 2-3 on March 8th

. I also forwarded

her an evaluator form to fill out as she is a social worker who is in charge of the long-

term care program run through the Native Friendship Centre.

2. I received confirmation that the healthline.ca has posted the event. It looks great.

3. I finished my booklet and sent it to my supervisor for approval.

4. A participant called to confirm she will be attending the display.

5. I picked up the taped and wired art pieces as well as the pieces that have been

foamcored. I still have to pick up the information tags that will go with each art piece as

they did not cut them as I had asked them to.

February 13 2013

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1. A Participant called to say she will be attending the art display and I also received

permission from her to photograph her piece and to give it to art gallery for their spring

newsletter.

February 17 2013

1. I called the Re-Store in Owen Sound about a bed frame and they said they could

possibly donate one given that it is an art display. I am to speak with Jim Thomson about

this when he returns from Toronto on Thursday 21st.

2. I am thinking of adding MP3 players to each display station with the stories recorded

on them. I am going to try and see if I can get this sponsored.

February 18 2013

1. I picked out an old door from our shed and my husband cut off the ends and we sanded

it down. I will now pick out some green paint to put on it for the display.

2. I looked on line for another doctor bag since the one I ordered will not come in before

the display time. This is horrible! I have put out a couple of emails as well to see if

someone has a doctor bag I could borrow.

February 19 2013

1. connected with Tracey Richardson from Owen Sound Sun Times about setting up a

time to meet with her to do an article in the paper about the display. Tracey is interested

in having some participants interviewed but this is an issue given that some of them may

not remember that they participated and what they created and this was not included in

the original time commitment.

2. I worked on putting references together for the information booklet and doing some

more editing of it and moving boxes around in it.

3. I sent emails to evaluators confirming if they can come or not.

4. I sent an email to home hardware in Owen Sound to ask for donation some green paint

and a bag of sand for the display.

5. I spoke with Staples about having some printing donated as well as MP3 players and

headphones for the display. She advised to write a letter asking for the donation and she

told me who to deliver it to.

Date: February 22 2013

Staples Canada

1077 10 St W

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Owen Sound, On

N4K 5S2

Dear ___________:

My name is Kirsten Camartin and I am a registered social worker

who is in the midst of conducting a major project on the combined use of art

therapy and a creative expression storytelling program called TimeSlips™ as

part of my graduate diploma in art therapy through the Toronto Art Therapy

Institute. The purpose of my project is to build empathic connections

between persons with dementia, their caregivers and professionals who work

in the dementia care field. I also plan on using the arts in order to show how

persons with dementia can live fulfilling lives by engaging in life-enriching

activities. The stories and artistic pieces that will result from this project

will be on display at the Tom Thomson Art Gallery from March 8 to 17

2013 (Please see attached invitation for your review).

While the six creative stories authored by persons with dementia, will

be displayed for all to read, in order to make this display as accessible as

possible, I am interested in having six MP3 players with head sets placed in

front of each of the stories as a way to expand so that the audience can enjoy

this unique project. I have also created a six page colour information

booklet (please see attached booklet) describing the project, the display,

what art therapy and creative storytelling is as well as how I conducted the

project, and a bit about me as a professional in the field. I am hoping that

guests will be able to utilize the booklet as a way to help them understand

the goals of the project. Given that this event has received a significant

amount of publicity through the Alzheimer Society Grey Bruce and the Tom

Thomson Art Gallery, I expect that I will need approximately 150 of these

information booklets printed.

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Throughout my time as an art therapy student, I have bought ink, paper,

desk and art supplies, and utilized the copy and print services as well as the

electronics department, and have appreciated the help and support the staff

have provided me at your store. This is also why I am requesting the

support of the Staples, Owen Sound store with the purchase of six MP3

players, six sets of headphones as well as with the printing costs associated

with 150 information booklets. In exchange, I would be delighted to add

your name to the display as well as the booklet. Not only would you be

helping out an aspiring art therapist, your store could be credited with

helping give shape to the idea that it is the person and not the disease that

must be focused upon. In short, I would love to have Staples be a part of

this collaborative effort in raising awareness about who and what life

enriching activities that persons with dementia are capable of participating

in.

Sincerely,

Kirsten Camartin, MSW RSW DTATI Cand.

6. I received an email from Deborah outlining interest from the Alzheimer Society of

Canada media relation’s person regarding my project- as March is Brain Awareness

Month. I sent an email to this person regarding her interest in the project and forwarded

the information sheet I have made up about it.

7. Looks like I have secured participation as evaluators from 3 more evaluators for the

display. Yippy that is three more evaluators. One of them is a participant but I thought

this would add to the depth of the evaluation.

February 20 2013

1. I called and secured agreement to have a picture of an art piece in the newspaper. I also

sent out an email to the professional caregivers to see if they would be interested in

having their artwork pictured for the paper and a possible interview about the project.

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2. I emailed Tracey Richardson from Sun Times to inform her of securing one

participant’s artwork and that I would maybe have another person participate and do

interview after Feb 26th

.

3. I started to write my speech to give on the day of the celebration.

4. I emailed Deborah a copy of the two consent forms that need to be signed by

professionals in order to participate in the session. I have also put a personal caregiver

consent form into the bag I will be carrying for the session as there is one persons who

has not signed yet.

February 21 2013

1. got Dr. bag.

February 22 2013

1. sent an email to potential evaluator for the display. Also sent an email with attached

evaluation to two other evaluators.

2. I called the Shoreline Beacon and asked if they could help me with covering the art

display in the paper. Tiffany gave me email and I sent the invite as well as the project

outline to her and hopefully they will have it in for next week.

3. I wrote an email to Jaime Johnston at 93.7 regarding the display and if she wanted to

help me publicize the event.

4. I took in letter to Staples to ask for donation of mp3 players, headsets and printing

costs. I spoke with the general manager in person about it and he said he would get back

to me.

February 24 2013

1. I went to the Re-Store and received the donation of a head board for the display.

2. I painted the door for the display.

Feb 26th

2013

Session for Personal and Professional Caregivers- Feb 26 2013 at Tom Thomson Art

gallery.

Participants:

1. Vi- personal caregiver of one of the participants

2. Zach- personal caregiver of one of the participants

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3. Wade- personal caregiver of one of the participants

4. Becca- person with dementia who came with personal caregiver

5. Devon – professional

6. Jade- professional

7. Violet- professional

Zach arrived ten minutes early when I was still putting the art materials out. I took his

jacket and offered him some coffee. We briefly talked about how his recent holiday went

and he explained some of the things went on during the trip. Next to arrive were all three

professionals and in another minute, Vi. I struggled a bit to greet all of them and guide

them to where they needed to be. I had set up a circle with chairs and the timeslips

picture to be used for the first half of the session as well as six separate tables for each

person to artistically respond to the stories during the second half of the session. I also

had an art table set up in the middle of the semi circle of tables.

Becca and Wade did not arrive until we were in the beginning stages of developing the

timeslips story. Note, I did not invite Becca to this session, Wade showed up with her

and I knew of his difficulty of finding care for her during this session. I adapted the

session as such to meet her needs and I did not need to alter my speech since I ensured

that I am respectful of all persons regardless of their presence.

While we waited for Becca and Wade to arrive, I put out some collage images while the

people sat on the chairs I organized separately from the tables. I wanted to make it a two

step process- first timeslips then artistic responses after reading the creative stories that

their love ones and clients made up.

In light of the time, I did start the session at 10:10. I started out by reading the following

after making sure all had coffee and that they saw the muffins and blueberries I brought.

Thank you for joining me today and for participating in this project. The title of this

project is Fostering Personhood through Creative Expression. Personhood means treating

others with respect and the recognition that persons with memory loss/dementia are

unique individuals who experience life and relationships at all stages. We can support

personhood by having interactions that are positive, stable and secure. It is my

suggestion that participation in creative expression through storytelling and the creation

of art, is person centered and supports personhood. This project in particular is about

uncovering creative activities that are life enriching for those with memory loss and their

caregivers. With your help, I want to use the arts as a way of showing how persons with

memory loss/dementia can learn, grow and share who they are with you and others,

thereby sustaining personhood. I want to help support empathic connections between

you and your loved ones or you and your clients using the arts. The use of creative

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expression can provide both personal and professional caregivers with a new way of

witnessing and perceiving the person with memory loss/dementia since the focus is upon

parts of the self that are still intact and functioning. Viewed through this lens, the slogan

‘see me not my disease’ can be brought to life.

Before we continue, I thought we could introduce ourselves to the group. (At this point, I

actually told them I was a social worker who decided to make a change in going into art

therapy and how I came to become involved with the Society- that I believed in the law

of attraction and signs and that my mentor had mentioned the great social work team that

the Alzheimer Society had, that I was drawn to the ‘coffee break’ ad that the Alzheimer

Society had laying out at the European Bakery and that I parked in front of the Alzheimer

Society unbeknownst to me one day. I took all these as signs I was supposed to do work

in this area.)

The purpose of this session is twofold. First I would like to give you an opportunity to

experience the process I went through with persons with memory loss during 2 individual

sessions I held with them in their homes, over the past two months. We will spend

approximately 20 minutes doing this. Second, I want to give you an opportunity to

artistically respond to the creative stories that have been developed by your loved ones or

clients. For this part, I want to give you 45 minutes.

So without further a due, I would like to tell you about and give you an opportunity to

participate in the program I introduced to your loved ones and clients, called TimeSlips.

TimeSlips is a creative storytelling activity that is based on using funny, staged or

theatrical images to elicit creative stories. It does not rely upon the use of memory and

there are no right or wrong answers. The stories that are developed are sometimes

nonsensical, non-logical and combine reality with fantasy. In light of our time, I have

gone ahead and chosen an image and I will ask you open-ended questions about the

image. The answers to the questions will make up the story. To let you know, when I

presented this task to your loved ones and clients, I provided them with a choice of 12

images from a box. I asked them to choose one that attracted them in some way and I

asked them questions pertaining to that image.

After everyone took their images in their hands that I had placed on their seats, we started

and I had flip chart paper, a sharpie and I asked questions. Here they are:

What do you want to say she is doing? Dancing. She might be doing the twist. It look

liks ohh…It looks like she’s stepping on a cockroach.

Where do you want to say this takes place: Gymnasium, a market square, I think it takes

place in Germany- looking at the costumes. I think it’s a parade. If we could just see the

pin closer up.

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What do you want to call her?

Zelda.

At this point, Wade entered and I saw he had Becca with him. I welcomed them in and

we temporarily stopped the session so that Wade and Becca could be introduced to

everyone in the group. I got Wade a water and asked them how they were doing. Wade

said well we are late. We continued the session after I quickly explained that we were

commencing the process and method I used with persons with memory loss during

individual sessions at their homes.

What do you want to call her? Zelda, Gertrude, MaryAnn, Madame LaZonga, Susie.

Shirley added later that she’s not a Gertrude.

How does she feel?

Overwhelmed by that name! She’s in the groove. I see a smile. I think she’s happy.

She’s really concentrating on what’s she doing. She’s looking for a partner. She’s trying

to stay inside the lines. She’s really into it.

Where does she come from? New Orleans, Hiedelberg, another country. She looks like a

tourist. She’s not Italian. Home in Scotland.

What does she do for a living? She’s a dentist, accountant. She going wild on holiday.

She’s a widow looking for a husband… She might catch one. The tuba player is enjoying

watching her. A dance instructor, extrovert.

Is she alone or with someone?

Not yet.

Any sounds

Um pa pa um pa pa, clapping, laughing, members of the band, cameras clicking and

people talking, foot stomping, singing uh la la.

What does it feel like outside?

Warm, Fall time cause of sweater and coats. Oktoberfest. Where’s the beer? Its in her

right hand. New Year.

What happens after this moment? She takes a bow. Cheering. I think they do one of

those twirlies. Clapping, she might go into the audience and grab a partner and some

would duck down behind the tuba player, whistling.

Title of the story: A lonely Old Maid.

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Note: there were lots of laughs during this time and everyone participated in the process

of coming up with different answers to the questions.

Now that we have gone through this process of developing a story, I would like to read

the stories that have been developed by your loved ones or clients. You can follow along

with the booklets I have provided you with. The other page I have provided you with has

all the images that were chosen for each story. Note that three participants choose the

same image. Underneath each image, you will see the name of the story that it belongs

to. After I read all the stories, I would like you to come up and choose a title of the story

from this table and create an artistic response to a part of the story that interests you and

or attracts you or that resonates with you.

I have a variety of art materials set out on this table for you to choose from. I also have

templates or what I call places to start from, if you feel need it. After the 45 minutes is

up I would like to end by asking you 3 questions about the session.

As expected, this was a bit of a confusing process. I had the titles out but some people

took the image and not the title. Jade was the first to arrive at the table and she took Our

Hawaiian Holiday and then realizing that Zach was coming up behind her she paused as

she figured that maybe Zach would want to respond to this story since it was his wife

who created it. She said I thought that might happen as Fred picked up the image that

was left on the table as Jade had the title in her hand. Jade nodded her head in knowing

that she would choose another story and this was not a problem. Devon waited for

everyone to choose a story line before taking the last one on the table.

Participants and observations during art therapy session

1. Vi- personal caregiver of one of the participants. Said even after I read the story Lori,

well we can’t tell who wrote that one. I could tell even from looking at the image that it

was hers. Vi took her time in choosing a type of paper to work with. She picked up the

image and not the story title and sat down. She chose the sketching paper and the soft oil

pastels and started creating right away. She took her time in creating this piece,

combining and smudging colours in. She did ask about how to create brown but realized

it would not work- I am not sure what happened here since I was getting a description of

the art piece that another person had created when she asked this question.

When I spoke to Vi, she gave the following description of her piece: This piece is titled

An Inviting Haven. Looking at the image of the girl in bed made this participant think

about the days when her dog was hidden under the covers in her own bed. The green

colour used in the image of the girl in bed is comforting and warm and a reminder of

good times had at Algonquin Park growing up. This piece is focused upon a cottage

scene where mom is making blueberry pie, dad is fishing and the kids are taking the

dog out, going fishing and getting into some trouble.

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Vi did ask about putting her name at the bottom and I said she could but I would need

her to sign an extra consent as it would be displayed publically. Vi changed her mind

and said she would not put her name on it.

2. Zach- personal caregiver of one of the participants. Zach took the image

of the boy jumping up in the air as it represented the story his wife wrote

and he knew this beforehand as Ava had shared the story with him prior to

the session. Interestingly enough, He took a template of squares and filled

them with three different images that actually represented three different

stories. He then went on to write a long piece about the images he chose.

This piece is a written description of this participant’s response to the

stories Lori, What Might I See and Our Hawaiian Holiday. The

description reads: “Lori…Although ill in bed, is reading a book about

exotic travel destinations which she hoped to visit. I also want to spend

time with my mother every day. Not only with chores but also just to talk

to her. Maybe a sister? After all, I have four brothers and I am not able to

talk girl things!” The participant continues on to write about the “Holiday

in Hawaii… sunny and warm. Lovely beaches. We visited various

restaurants and enjoyed the dishes. We also enjoyed the swimming and

snorkeling and spotting various fish of many colors. We saw stingrays,

eels and many others. On shore we watched the humpback whales with

their newborn cubs. All in all a very enjoyable holiday.”

Note I did not get a personal description of the pieces given his extensive

written description.

3. Wade- personal caregiver of one of the participants. Wade chooe Man’s

best friend story. Wade then asked me what he should be doing as he stood

at the art table with two images in his hand. I said well it looks like he had

some images he may want to glue onto a piece of paper and or he could

continue to look for images if he wanted. He sat down and glued the images

of a dog and tiger as he called it, onto the page and he wrote a description on

the page. Afterwards he went around and looked at each persons work- like

a teacher standing and hovering over them. It did not seem to bother people

so I let it pan out on its own. He then went back over to the art table and I

went to him and he asked I don’t know what to do. I said sometimes it can

help to re read the story he was responding to and I handed him the story.

He re read it and then he sat down and asked for a template like his wife was

working on. I tried to see if I had another one and I did not. I handed him a

template of a storefront with boxes and he used this instead, not like a store

front though but as individual boxes like the template I had given to his

wife. He made three separate pieces in the boxes. The image in the upper

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box is the owner of the dog who is having shoes tried on and he is

complaining that they are far too tight. The image in the left hand box is

representative of a boy coming for the dog and all the dog’s beauty. The

image in the right hand corner is of a dog and platform in the mill.

According to this participant, when he was young, he had a dog that

followed him everywhere. One day, the dog followed him into the mill and

when he stepped off the platform, he accidently hit the dog in the mouth.

The dog did not want anything to do with him for at least a week.

4. Becca- person with dementia who came with personal caregiver. Becca read the

stories and said to me she did not know what to do. I handed her a template of square

boxes and asked her fill it in. she said with what and I said anything. Becca sat for a

long while looking at the sheet and then the stories and I went back over to her a few

times and asked her to fill in the boxes as she wished. I also attempted to have her

respond to the story she created by telling her she created it but this did not seem to be

interested in this. I went over and asked her to fill the squares in and she said with what,

I said anything she wished and this time I asked her to pick a colour to start with. She

said green and then she said a tree and then she picked up the brown and started. Once

she got started, she became very concentrated. At one point she said she didn’t know

what the images were that I had all on one piece of paper and so I said ok and I took them

and put them aside so it would make it easier for her.

Becca created a tree with markers- in her usual style that I remember- as I have seen

Becca outside of his project. She uses short lines to create her pieces and she created a

tree in one box and a rainbow with birds in another. Underneath the one image she titled

it and in sharing with the group she said it was about her favourite song- somewhere over

the rainbow where the bluebirds fly. While I was worried about Becca and her response

to the session given it was not designed for her specifically, she fit in and created her own

piece that I will use in the art display.

5. Devon – professional. Chose the story What about me/Us and at first she took the

pencil and eraser and created a sort of template of a chair and kitchen. She then asked

about the paints I had available and I showed her and then about the canvas. She took a

canvas and said she would try to use the acrylic paint as she had never done so before.

She worked steadily transferring her original idea onto the canvas and painting it in. She

then used pastel to colour in some of piece as well as some stickers and collage images of

food. This is what she had to say about the piece This piece is titled Woof. Emphasis is

placed upon the appeal of the cookies on the top shelf and the sounds of the chair

scraping on the floor, the banging of the kitchen cupboards and the use of two images

to create one story as represented by the “x 2” located after the painted dog. In sharing

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her piece she mentioned she could not draw dogs so that is also why she put x2.

Deborah also smiled when I looked at her piece and chuckled a bit.

6. Jade- professional ended up choosing the story called Happiness. She took a template

of a backyard scene to work with and used pastel to colour it in. She then took some

collage images as well as making a rainbow out of pastel and cutting and pasting it onto

the art piece. She then used stickers of words and placed them onto the piece. When I

spoke to her about it she said it looked juvenile and that her kids could do better than this.

I tried to bring her back to the fact that it was her authentic response to the story that we

were after and the connection made. She then told me the following: This piece is called

Happiness. It is about young girls having fun in the backyard and is inspired from a

part of the story that reads, “I want her to go back to the place where she lives and to

run around…She must have fun.” This participant commented on the change from

being sick to becoming healthy and the belief in getting better.

7. Violet- professional. Chose to work with the story called What Might I

see. She quietly took collage images and feathers and glued them onto the

page expanding beyond its borders. She then used stickers as well. Barb

was very concentrated when doing this piece and she would try out different

places where the images could land. When I spoke to her about it she said

the following: This piece is titled What Might I see/Soaring Above the

Clouds. The feathers represent warm and pleasant memories and

longings. The longing to be in some place other than where she is right

now. The piece goes off the original page provided as a way of capturing

the notion that our thoughts take use to places beyond the existence of

what others see. The triumph of the human spirit is to be able to

anticipate moments of joy and the hope and possibility of better times

ahead.

While some people were finishing up, others were going around to the others and seeing

what they had created. Noticing this, I said maybe we could all share what we had

created and so each participant went around and shared their piece with the rest of the

group which was a version what I have already written down.

After this, I asked the group if they could help me answer three questions about the

session and they agreed.

1. tell me about your experience of reading/hearing the stories by persons with memory

loss/dementia

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-together (this from the participant whose wife reminscenced about at trip)

-I noticed that the stories had very detailed memories

-I noticed how listening to the other stories sparked memories for myself

-Every story is so unique and it really behooves us to seek out that individuality in each

person-

-I realized how important it is to listen to people

-The soul does not get Alzheimer’s as said by Nancy Regan. We are getting a reflection

of each person’s soul through the stories.

2. Tell me about your experience of having to respond using art materials

-out of my comfort zone

-its fun

-made me think – outside our comfort zone cause its easy to stay in our comfort zone and

how important this is for when we are dealing with people who have Alzheimer’s to

encourage them to go out of their comfort zone too

-you tap into creativity and soul when using art

-how important it is to try something new and how important it is for us to encourage

people with dementia to try something new

-I realize what a wonderful job my wife does- went into describing his wife’s works- her

photographs that are placed up in their home- his wife was sitting right beside him for

this- how nice. Very authentic

-It is important to provide positive reinforcement and to see capabilities

3. Can you describe any changes in how you might view/relate to person with memory

loss/dementia that you might attribute to participation in today’s session

-It takes an opportunity to step back out of the professional stance and get a different

perspective using the creative medium and in being able to understand the concept that

our thoughts are more than what we see

-it changed my outlook

-it helped me by becoming a part of things she is doing- I used to have her take care of

everything and now I am forced to take over some things and get involved. This activity

being one of them.

-I have come to realize how much a person enjoys music- not sure how this relates but

the piece that his wife did had something to do with song and in this way it relates

perfectly.

-there has been such positive feedback since starting the art therapy program 1.5 years

ago through the society. It is a valuable program to have with any person with or without

art experience.

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Before leaving I reminded everyone of the date of the display as well as the fact that I had

sent out invitations to everyone. Lori’s came back to me for some reason so I have to get

her address again.

I thanked everyone and cleaned up. After cleaning up I met with Kim and Robert to

discuss the display and what can be put up and if screws are allowed in the walls. Robert

advised they can be used and that I can keep the display up for the whole time. They are

worried a little since March break camp will be in while the display is up and that my art

might get wrecked but they thought it would be ok.

2. I wrote up the descriptions for the art pieces and brought the art pieces into the

Framery to get done up.

February 27

1. I added descriptions of the art pieces into the information booklets.

1. I had an interview with the Shoreline Beacon about how I am and the project I am

working on with Tiffany Wilson.

2. I finished writing the descriptions for the art pieces and printed them off and brought

them to the Framery to get done up.

3. I dropped off the evaluations for the professionals for to fill out at the Alzheimer

Society. I now have 5 people who have volunteered to be evaluators.

4. Tracey Richardson emailed me about the dates to do an interview about the display. 5. I went into Staples to see if they had approved donation. No word yet. Will try back tomorrow. February 28th 2013 1. did 90 second interview with Country 93 radio station for the art display. March 1st 2013 1. received 6 mp3s and 6 sets of headsets as well as 10% of information booklets (had them printed on March 4th). March 2nd 2013 1. recorded all six stories on the mp3s and set them up to go on repeat.

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March 5th 2013 2. I had to do up descriptions to put under each of the canvases that persons with dementia created as I have descriptions for everything else. March 4th 1. put posters up around town for the art display, dropped off booklets to be printed. Purchased door pull to screw in to door. March 5th 2013 1. had my own son involved by painting his feet and having him step on the uniloc stones. 2. put more posters up. March 6th 2013 1. worked on blog for Alzheimer Society Ontario website for Ryan McKellar. 2. got boxes labeled to take to gallery. Got all items into the truck that I could. 3. had to take mp3 player back and get new one as the one was not working properly. Had to put the story onto it again. March 7th 2013 1. set up for art display from 10-4. I along with Robert, Kim and others at the art gallery helped put it together. I was then interviewed by the Owen Sound Sun Times. 2. had to re do the sponsors picture as I forgot to add in Tom Thomson art gallery. I had to find a bigger frame as well as make a stand for the frame to stand on. I also had to make signs up for the wipes for people to use as well as where to put the evaluations. March 8th 2013 1. sent email to Deborah asking evaluators to confirm they are attending. Sent email to evaluators confirming she will be attending. Sent email to another evaluator confirming she can come and evaluate. Spoke with BSO team at hospital and someone will attend today at 1:00 p.m. to evaluate the display. 2. I went and bought an USB hub to connect all six mp3 players for charging. I also worked out a few last touches for the display- adding in the glass filled with jello and

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putting out a stand for the one piece. I also had to go and get two descriptions done up as I was missing one and the other one got put in the wrong place. 3. I along with the co-op students made the top for the evaluations to fit through- slot of sorts. 3. I went to the display from 11-4. I had people stop in all day. Had an evaluator come through. Comments made included: -that he had never thought of doing something like this with people who do not have artistic abilities -he asked if this is something that I would come and teach others about to do- I said that it is a specialty and that I would facilitate sessions but I cannot teach someone to do art therapy. - had 3 other evaluators come through. I had a group come from the Native Friendship centre- I was prepared for this and had coffee, tea and water ready for them. I explained the project briefly and then answered some questions from Maragret, who was facilitating the group. She asked what dementia is and if it is a vegetable state and what it really means. I advised that there are many different kinds of dementia, that in some types, artistic abilities get even better, also that dementia involves cognitive changes in the brain so that sometimes word finding is hard, or dealing with finances becomes difficult and or behavioural changes occur- stress can lead to frustration. I said that sometimes it can affect how you view surroundings. I asked Jenn to add anything she thought was missing given that she works with the Alzhimer Society. Jenn applauded my explanation and said that it can affect younger adults and sometimes older adults. I said that it is obvious that persons with dementia have capabilities- this is proof and that they can learn, grow and share. At this point, one woman said how long is this going to take because I have to get to the employment office. I said the group was free to explore the display and that the mp3 players were there to listen to the stories. Each of them went over to the display and put the headphones on and read the stories and looked at the art. When finished, they sat back down again and had a free flowing conversation about native traditions- including dream catchers. I said migwrech out of respect and after about an hour the group had left. I had everyeon sign the guest book. 4. I called Ava and Zach and asked permission of Ava to have her pieces photographed for the Alzheimer Society of Ontario Blog. She advised that this was fine. I also made sure it was ok with Fred that his name was on the art work that was displayed as I realized I had not gained permission from him for this. He said yes it was. March 9th

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1. had to re record story for the Mp3 2. I had people visit the gallery. A visitor commented on the following: -it is so touching when you said you placed emphasis upon “where do you want to say this is” in terms of eliciting a story. It really recognizes their control and need to have control. March 10th 1. at the gallery from 3-5. Had a couple of visitors through. 2. was informed that the CBC was interested in having me on the show. Called Mark Collins back about this. Arranged to be on the Ontario Morning show. 3. organized notes for interview to reflect upon. 4. was informed Rogers cable television is interested in having me on the show on Thursday with the Alzheimer Society Grey Bruce. 5. organized to have Carrot cake and chocolate cupcakes for Saturday’s celebration. March 12 2013 1. CBC radio interview on Ontario Morning with Wei Chen. 2. at the gallery from 12:30 to 4:30 p.m. one evaluator scheduled to come in. Trevor advised that 2 people came to see the display before I arrived. When I read their comments in the guest book, it was because of the CBC radio interview that they were inspired to come. Trevor advised that they did fill out questionnaires as well. 3. Alzheimer Society blog post for March has an article I wrote about the project. March 13 2013 1. went to gallery from 12:30 to 4:30. Had an evaluator come through as well as a colleague in the helping profession. I had some people fill out general questionnaires as well. 2. spent time trying to get the podcast downloaded into itunes. Technology is frustrating sometimes, especially when all you want is something that you created! 2. made extra copies of the article I published to have at the display. March 14 2013

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1. Rogers television show- Grey County Life- I was on with Bill Twaddle at 11:38 a.m. I am trying to get a copy of the show. I spoke about the display as well as art therapy. 2. went to gallery from 12:30 to 4:45. Had an evaluator come through as well as some others who filled out questionnaires. March 15 2013 1. went to gallery from 12:30 to 4:30. Had evaluator show up. 2. picked up stethoscope from Dr. office- a real one for the celebration. Also went to Wal-Mart and got cup cake carrier as well as food for the celebration. 3. took pictures of the display to have for the write up portion of the project. March 16 2013 1. celebration at art gallery for display. Had approximately 40 people show up, 24 that heard my speech I gave regarding the display. It was very emotional for me, as soon as I said, sacred journey, I teared up. Celebration speech Speech to give on day of Celebration

Thank you all for joining me here today for an honoury celebration of a sacred

journey that involved the creation and sharing of six creative stories and multiple

art pieces developed by persons with memory loss/dementia during two individual

art therapy sessions as well art pieces developed by 3 personal caregivers and 4

professional caregivers who work in the dementia care field, during one group art

therapy session.

My name is Kirsten Camartin and As a part of completing a graduate diploma in art

therapy with the Toronto Art Therapy Institute, I was required to conduct a major

project highlighting the use of art therapy in my community. I choose to focus upon

the combined use of art therapy and a creative expression storytelling program

called TimeSlips™ with different groups of people who all have something in

common: a relationship that is in part shaped by dementia. The pieces in this display

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are not labeled by group, such as created by “person with dementia” or created by

“personal caregiver” or created by “professional caregiver.” At the center of the project

lies the creative story that is then used as inspiration for other creative art pieces by those

with and without dementia. Presenting the display as a collaborative effort forms a

connection between all the art pieces and the creative parts of each participant. This

display interweaves groups of people to honour performances of the self, and is a way of

celebrating the introduction of a dialogue that puts the person, the artist, and the creative

storyteller first and not the disease. Your presence here today paves the way for further

discussion about the life enriching activities that persons with and without dementia can

do together.

Before I wrap up, I want to recognize those who have worked so hard to make

this event a success. My husband and son for allowing me the space to make my

dreams a reality

My family and friends who have provided me with support and encouragement,

especially Mary for baking the chocolate cupcakes and diabetic carrot cake and to

my brother for coming all the way from Orillia to see the display

My clinical art therapy supervisor Beth Merriam for her quick and fruitful

responses

Annabelle Garland for mentoring me through this time

All the participants who trusted me enough to safely lead them on this creative

and sacred journey

All the evaluators for their valuable input and time

The Framery for providing taping and wiring of the canvases at no cost

The Alzheimer Society Grey Bruce for all their time and efforts in helping me

recruit participants as well as promoting this project

The Tom Thomson Art Gallery, especially Robert Alton and Kim Skene for

providing me with the studio space and help with putting the display together

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Please note that there is a guest book to sign upon your departure as well as a short questionnaire to fill out regarding your thoughts about the display. Your thoughts and feelings about the display are important and will be used as a part of a write up I am required to do about the success of the project so please do not hesitate to respond. All responses are anonymous. Also, Please also feel free to pick up a photocopy of a recent article I published in the Canadian Art Therapy Association Journal in the November 2012 issue about the use of art therapy with persons with dementia. And finally, there is coffee, tea, water as well as some delicious healthy treats for you to munch on while your looking at the display. So from the bottom of my heart I want to thank you for attending this special event today. The celebration was attended by at least 35 people- 4 participants and the rest family of and or were evaluators. It was so awesome to have all these people eating and drinking and chatting around the table I set up in the middle of the studio. I had so many compliments and thank yous and emotional hand shakes. April 3rd 2013 1. delivered art pieces back to Ava, Zach, Becca, Wade as well as Vi and Cara. I had Zach, Wade, Becca and Vi sign consents so that I can use the pictures I took of their art pieces, in my write up. I also provided a summary of the project as promised to each of the participants. April 8th 2013 1. delivered art pieces back to Devon, Violet, Jade and Nicole and provided summaries for each of them. 2. I arranged to go to Sev and Cole’s house to drop off the art pieces as well as summaries for April 15th (Sev) and 16th (Cole).