Behind every person with Alzheimer’s disease or other dementias, there are hundreds of people dedicated to helping. The Alzheimer Society of Nova Scotia is the leading not-for-profit health charity working to improve the quality of life for Nova Scotians affected by Alzheimer’s disease or other dementias and advance the search for the cause and cure.
Three Mount Saint Vincent University Alumni dedicated to help the society with their expertise.
Linda Bird has just recently retired as Director of Programs and Services for the society. She finished her Master of Arts degree, Human Ecology, in MSVU in 1998. She worked at the university’s Centre on Aging before joining the Alzheimer Society. Linda shared that they’ve built the organization up and continues to evolve. She also said that It’s a good time for her to step away because she believes that the society have excellent staff is in good hands.
The legacy and work of Bird will be continued by Sacha Nadeau. She is a 2014 MSVU graduate with a Master of Arts in Family Studies and Gerontology. She also had a work experience at the Centre on Aging at MSVU. Before taking over from Linda, she has been with the society for three years. Sacha was inspired to see the growth behind the scenes at the society and to have a chance to deliver most of their programs before stepping into the director position. “Because of this, I’m very familiar with our current suite of programs and services and have a sense of the directions in which we can grow. I also have a phenomenal team behind me to help bring it to life.”, Sacha said.
Another MSVU Alumnus in the name of Marco Redden joins the society to take the responsibilities left by Sacha. He graduated Master of Arts in Family Studies and Gerontology at MSVU last year. Marco was the recipient of the university’s Graduate Thesis Award for his thesis: ‘Meaningful Engagement among Care Home Residents with Dementia and Family Members: A Critical Ecological Analysis.’
According to Marco, there is an unspoken language when it comes to how they understand issues. He also added that they can challenge each other with an array of perspectives that are so valuable in assessing evidence and supporting decision-making.
More to this story at https://www.msvu.ca/trio-of-msvu-alum-putting-their-expertise-to-work-at-the-alzheimer-society-of-ns/
References:
https://www.msvu.ca/
https://alzheimer.ca/
Photo credits to https://www.msvu.ca/
