The Dementia Collective

What if learning about dementia started before a family ever had to face it?

In this episode, Andrew Karesa sits down with Maura Jahangiri, Miss Canada 2026, and dementia advocate, to explore why she believes dementia education should begin with children and how her own experience with her grandfather changed the direction of her life.

Maura was around 16 when her grandfather was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease. Having grown up with little understanding of dementia beyond memory loss, she remembers how frightening it was to watch his behaviour change and eventually see him move into long-term care.

Maura shares her goal as Miss Canada 2026: bringing dementia education into elementary schools. She explains why she believes introducing children to dementia earlier could reduce fear and stigma, help families navigate a future diagnosis, and encourage a new generation to become involved in dementia care.

In this episode:

• How Maura’s grandfather’s Alzheimer’s diagnosis shaped her advocacy
• What it was like experiencing dementia as a teenager
• The difficult decision to move her grandfather into long-term care
• Why she started working with people living with dementia
• What “The Power of Presence” means in dementia care
• Why people living with dementia should never be treated like children
• What she has learned working in memory care and assisted living
• How music and meaningful activities can reach people living with dementia
• Why burnout and understaffing can affect the quality of care
• Maura’s push to bring dementia education into elementary schools
• How Miss Canada has given her a platform to advocate for change
• What dignity, autonomy, and respect should look like in dementia care

This is a conversation about dementia, family, grief, education, dignity, and the power that simply showing up can have in another person’s life.

Learn more at:
⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.bluebellvillage.ca⁠⁠⁠⁠
https://www.instagram.com/powerofpresence_/

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Join The Village and help shape conversations like this by submitting questions to our guests: https://www.patreon.com/cw/blueBellVillage

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This episode is brought to you by Eugeria. Check out their website for dementia products you can trust.

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Disclaimer: This podcast is for general information only, not medical advice. Consult a qualified healthcare provider about your health. In an emergency, contact local emergency services. Guests’ views are their own and do not necessarily reflect those of Andrew Karesa or blueBell Village Ltd. Third-party references are for information only, not endorsements. You use this podcast at your own risk. Andrew Karesa, blueBell Village Ltd., and their team are not liable for any loss, injury, or damage arising from its use.

What happens when someone who has spent his life rescuing people faces something he cannot rescue his own mum from?

In this episode, Andrew Karesa sits down with Andrew “Reidy” Reid, longtime Bondi Rescue lifeguard, endurance athlete and dementia advocate, for an incredibly open conversation about lifeguarding, family, caregiving, grief, endurance sport, and his mum Trish’s journey with dementia.

Reidy has spent more than 20 years as a lifeguard, becoming one of the familiar faces of Bondi Rescue. He has also completed more than 50 marathons, competed in Ironman triathlons, and even holds a Guinness World Record for running a marathon carrying a surfboard.

But years before dementia became part of his own family, Reidy had already started using that endurance background to support dementia research through the 155-kilometre Bondi2Berry ride.

Then his mum, Trish, was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease and vascular dementia.

The conversation explores Reidy’s life beyond dementia, from growing up around Bondi and becoming a lifeguard to the beginnings of Bondi Rescue, extraordinary rescues, more than 50 marathons, Ironman racing, his 2:49 marathon, and the unlikely story behind his Guinness World Record marathon carrying a surfboard.

In this episode:

• Growing up around Bondi and how Reidy became a lifeguard
• The real-life rescues behind Bondi Rescue
• What more than 20 years of lifeguarding has taught him about patience and caregiving
• Trish’s early signs of dementia and eventual diagnosis
• What it feels like to mourn someone who is still alive
• The emotional difficulty of visiting a parent living in a nursing home
• Navigating caregiving and complicated family relationships
• The wild story behind running a 3:17 marathon carrying a surfboard
• Bondi2Berry and raising money for dementia research

This is a conversation about much more than Bondi Rescue. It is about what happens when the person accustomed to being the rescuer becomes a son trying to navigate something he cannot fix.

Learn more at:
⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.bluebellvillage.ca⁠⁠⁠⁠

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Join The Village and help shape conversations like this by submitting questions to our guests: https://www.patreon.com/cw/blueBellVillage

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This episode is brought to you by Eugeria. Check out their website for dementia products you can trust.

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Disclaimer: This podcast is for general information only, not medical advice. Consult a qualified healthcare provider about your health. In an emergency, contact local emergency services. Guests’ views are their own and do not necessarily reflect those of Andrew Karesa or blueBell Village Ltd. Third-party references are for information only, not endorsements. You use this podcast at your own risk. Andrew Karesa, blueBell Village Ltd., and their team are not liable for any loss, injury, or damage arising from its use.

NOTE: This is Part 2 of 2 of our Silver Tech Summit 2.0 special.

In this special episode of The Dementia Collective, Andrew Karesa sits down with seven guests at the Silver Tech Summit 2.0 in Edmonton to explore what aging well really looks like, who gets a say in shaping that future, and why older adults need to be part of the conversation.

Featuring:

• Darlene Schindel, Founder, NurseWell Collective
• Dr. Martin Ferguson-Pell, Professor, Faculty of Rehabilitation Medicine, University of Alberta
• Janice Baskin, Manager, Edmonton Regional Innovation Network
• Karen Murdock, Founder, Silver Longevity Business Association
• Jay Pritchard, President, WE Seniors
• Zoran Kovacevic, entrepreneur and founder of Pace Pet
• Chief Billy Morin, Member of Parliament for Edmonton Northwest, former Chief of Enoch Cree Nation, and Indigenous Services Critic

In this episode:

• What “Build With Us, Not For Us” actually means
• Why older adults need a voice in the technologies and services created for them
• Why care is about more than technology
• Loneliness, isolation, and rebuilding community
• Turning research and innovation into real-world solutions
• Entrepreneurship and designing alongside the people you serve
• Indigenous entrepreneurship and culturally appropriate care for Elders
• Rethinking how we define and measure successful aging

This special episode was filmed at and produced in conjunction with the Silver Tech Summit 2.0, hosted by WE Seniors in Edmonton, Alberta.

Learn more at:

https://www.bluebellvillage.ca

https://silvertechsummit.ca/

https://slba.ca/

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Join The Village and help shape conversations like this by submitting questions to our guests: https://www.patreon.com/cw/blueBellVillage

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Disclaimer: This podcast is for general information only, not medical advice. Consult a qualified healthcare provider about your health. In an emergency, contact local emergency services. Guests’ views are their own and do not necessarily reflect those of Andrew Karesa or blueBell Village Ltd. Third-party references are for information only, not endorsements. You use this podcast at your own risk. Andrew Karesa, blueBell Village Ltd., and their team are not liable for any loss, injury, or damage arising from its use.

NOTE: This is Part 1 of 2 of our Silver Tech Summit 2.0 special.

In this special episode of The Dementia Collective, Andrew Karesa sits down with seven guests at the Silver Tech Summit 2.0 in Edmonton to explore what aging well really looks like, who gets a say in shaping that future, and why older adults need to be part of the conversation.

Featuring:

• Darlene Schindel, Founder, NurseWell Collective
• Dr. Martin Ferguson-Pell, Professor, Faculty of Rehabilitation Medicine, University of Alberta
• Janice Baskin, Manager, Edmonton Regional Innovation Network
• Karen Murdock, Founder, Silver Longevity Business Association
• Jay Pritchard, President, WE Seniors
• Zoran Kovacevic, entrepreneur and founder of Pace Pet
• Chief Billy Morin, Member of Parliament for Edmonton Northwest, former Chief of Enoch Cree Nation, and Indigenous Services Critic

In this episode:

• What “Build With Us, Not For Us” actually means
• Why older adults need a voice in the technologies and services created for them
• Why care is about more than technology
• Loneliness, isolation, and rebuilding community
• Turning research and innovation into real-world solutions
• Entrepreneurship and designing alongside the people you serve
• Indigenous entrepreneurship and culturally appropriate care for Elders
• Rethinking how we define and measure successful aging

This special episode was filmed at and produced in conjunction with the Silver Tech Summit 2.0, hosted by WE Seniors in Edmonton, Alberta.

Learn more at:

https://www.bluebellvillage.ca

https://silvertechsummit.ca/

https://slba.ca/

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Join The Village and help shape conversations like this by submitting questions to our guests: https://www.patreon.com/cw/blueBellVillage

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Disclaimer: This podcast is for general information only, not medical advice. Consult a qualified healthcare provider about your health. In an emergency, contact local emergency services. Guests’ views are their own and do not necessarily reflect those of Andrew Karesa or blueBell Village Ltd. Third-party references are for information only, not endorsements. You use this podcast at your own risk. Andrew Karesa, blueBell Village Ltd., and their team are not liable for any loss, injury, or damage arising from its use.

What does caregiving look like when no one sees what you’re carrying?

In this episode, Andrew Karesa sits down with Katie Kristofic, founder of The Carefullist, caregiver advocate, and former family caregiver, to explore the realities of supporting a loved one through Alzheimer’s disease and why she now spends her late nights helping caregivers who have nowhere else to turn.

After caring for her mother through every stage of Alzheimer’s disease, Katie transformed her own experience into a mission to make caregiving less isolating. She shares the subtle signs that first made her realize something was wrong, the challenges her family faced as her mother’s condition progressed, and how her father’s quiet devotion shaped the way they navigated dementia together. Katie also reflects on balancing caregiving with a demanding corporate career, the unexpected challenges caregivers face in the workplace, and how those experiences ultimately led her to create The Carefullist.

Together, Andrew and Katie discuss the hidden emotional weight of caregiving, the importance of meeting every person living with dementia where they are, the value of community, and why caregivers deserve far more support than they often receive. They also explore what happens after caregiving ends, how purpose can emerge from grief, and why helping others became part of Katie’s own healing.

This is a conversation about Alzheimer’s disease, dementia, caregiving, family, grief, purpose, advocacy, and finding hope by helping others.

In this episode:

* How Katie first realized something was wrong with her mother
* How her father cared for his wife at home with creativity and compassion
* The challenges of balancing a career while caring for a parent
* Why so many caregivers feel isolated and unsupported
* How caregiving changed Katie’s purpose after her mother’s death
* Why she created The Carefullist
* The importance of finding community during and after caregiving
* Practical advice for families beginning a dementia journey
* Why Katie spends her nights supporting caregivers online

Whether you are caring for a parent, spouse, grandparent, friend, neighbour, or someone living with dementia, this conversation is a reminder that while caregiving can often feel lonely, you do not have to carry it alone. Sometimes the greatest source of hope is knowing that someone else understands exactly what you’re going through.

Learn more at:
⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.bluebellvillage.ca⁠⁠⁠⁠
https://www.carefullist.com

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Join The Village and help shape conversations like this by submitting questions to our guests: https://www.patreon.com/cw/blueBellVillage

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This episode is brought to you by Eugeria. Check out their website for dementia products you can trust.

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Disclaimer: This podcast is for general information only, not medical advice. Consult a qualified healthcare provider about your health. In an emergency, contact local emergency services. Guests’ views are their own and do not necessarily reflect those of Andrew Karesa or blueBell Village Ltd. Third-party references are for information only, not endorsements. You use this podcast at your own risk. Andrew Karesa, blueBell Village Ltd., and their team are not liable for any loss, injury, or damage arising from its use.

What if the biggest problem with dementia care is not dementia, but the way we have designed care around it?

In this episode, Andrew Karesa sits down with Eloy van Hal, co-founder of the Hogeweyk and senior managing advisor with Be Advice, to explore how one of the world’s most recognized approaches to dementia care grew from a traditional institutional nursing home into a neighbourhood built around normal life, autonomy, relationships, and personhood.

Often described as the world’s first “dementia village,” the Hogeweyk began transforming dementia care more than 30 years ago.

Together, Andrew and Eloy challenge conventional ideas about safety, locked doors, risk, independence, and what people living with dementia should be allowed to do. Eloy explains why everyday experiences like cooking with a knife, shopping for groceries, walking outside, meeting strangers, and choosing how to spend the day matter. He also shares why, if he were starting again today, he might not build a dementia village at all.

Eloy also reflects on his own experience supporting his mother, who is living with dementia, and how being a family caregiver has shaped his perspective after decades of working professionally in dementia care.

In this episode:

• How the Hogeweyk evolved from a traditional nursing home
• Why Eloy dislikes the term “dementia village”
• Why dementia care needs to rethink risk and safety
• Whether people living with dementia should be free to leave
• How small group homes and shared lifestyles create comfort
• Why everyday interactions and community matter
• What Eloy has learned caring for his own mother
• Why leadership is essential to changing dementia care
• What Eloy would do differently if building the Hogeweyk today

This is a conversation about dementia care, autonomy, dignity, risk, community, leadership, and a simple idea that people living with dementia should be seen people first

Learn more at:
⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.bluebellvillage.ca⁠⁠⁠⁠
https://www.bethecareconcept.com/en/
https://hogeweyk.dementiavillage.com/

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Join The Village and help shape conversations like this by submitting questions to our guests: https://www.patreon.com/cw/blueBellVillage

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This episode is brought to you by Eugeria. Check out their website for dementia products you can trust.

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Disclaimer: This podcast is for general information only, not medical advice. Consult a qualified healthcare provider about your health. In an emergency, contact local emergency services. Guests’ views are their own and do not necessarily reflect those of Andrew Karesa or blueBell Village Ltd. Third-party references are for information only, not endorsements. You use this podcast at your own risk. Andrew Karesa, blueBell Village Ltd., and their team are not liable for any loss, injury, or damage arising from its use.

What if your two-year-old was happy, healthy, and meeting her milestones, but you were told she would eventually begin to lose everything she had learned?

In this episode, Andrew Karesa sits down with Emily Forrester, mum to Leni and childhood dementia advocate, to share her family’s journey after Leni was diagnosed with Sanfilippo syndrome Type B, a rare and progressive form of childhood dementia.

Emily takes us through the unexpected path to Leni’s diagnosis, including the genetic testing that initially gave their family the wrong answer, the reality of raising a child with an ultra-rare condition, and what it means to know that without an effective treatment, Leni is expected to progressively lose her speech, cognition and mobility.

Together, Andrew and Emily explore the gaps families encounter navigating childhood dementia, from delayed diagnosis and fragmented care to education, work, research funding and access to clinical trials. Emily also shares why her family is fighting to get Leni access to potential treatment while she is still young, and why early diagnosis can make such an important difference.

In this episode:

• Who Leni is today and what life looks like for her family
• How Leni was diagnosed with Sanfilippo syndrome Type B
• Why childhood dementia can be so difficult to diagnose
• What Sanfilippo can mean for a child’s development
• Why early diagnosis matters
• The fragmented system families are expected to navigate
• The impact caregiving and advocacy can have on work and family life
• Why Emily believes childhood dementia needs greater recognition
• The clinical trials offering families hope for potential treatments
• Why funding remains such a major challenge in rare disease research
• How sharing Leni’s story has created awareness around the world
• What people can do to support families affected by Sanfilippo and childhood dementia

This is a conversation about childhood dementia, family, motherhood, rare disease, advocacy, hope, and one family’s fight to give Leni the future she deserves.

Learn more at:
⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.bluebellvillage.ca⁠⁠⁠⁠
https://www.gofundme.com/f/lenis-lifesaving-treatment

Saving Leni Book (Amazon)

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Join The Village and help shape conversations like this by submitting questions to our guests: https://www.patreon.com/cw/blueBellVillage

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This episode is brought to you by Eugeria. Check out their website for dementia products you can trust.

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Disclaimer: This podcast is for general information only, not medical advice. Consult a qualified healthcare provider about your health. In an emergency, contact local emergency services. Guests’ views are their own and do not necessarily reflect those of Andrew Karesa or blueBell Village Ltd. Third-party references are for information only, not endorsements. You use this podcast at your own risk. Andrew Karesa, blueBell Village Ltd., and their team are not liable for any loss, injury, or damage arising from its use.

What would it look like if our public spaces were designed to include people living with dementia?

In this special episode of The Dementia Collective, Andrew Karesa sits down with Junette Huynh, Director of Projects, and Lindsay Paul, Director of Philanthropy and Partnerships at Parks Foundation Calgary, to explore the story behind the Martin Family Legacy Garden, Canada’s first dementia-inclusive public park.

Opening in Calgary’s Dover community, the park was shaped through years of collaboration with Alzheimer Calgary, people living with dementia, caregivers, researchers, community organizations, and other partners. Junette and Lindsay explain how those perspectives influenced everything from colour-coordinated walking loops and wayfinding to accessible pathways, familiar furnishings, sensory elements, quiet spaces, and an intergenerational playground. 

In this episode:

• How Canada’s first dementia-inclusive public park came to be
• What actually makes a park dementia inclusive
• The principles of design
• Why walking loops, wayfinding, familiar design, and accessible pathways matter
• The role of intergenerational spaces in reducing dementia stigma
• How philanthropy and community partnerships brought the project to life
• How the park will be used for programming and future research
• How dementia-inclusive design could be incorporated into parks across Canada

This is a conversation about dementia, accessibility, independence, community, and what can happen when we design public spaces with people living with dementia in mind.

Learn more at:
⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.bluebellvillage.ca⁠⁠⁠⁠
https://parksfoundation.ca/projects-and-partnerships/dementia-inclusive-park/

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Join The Village and help shape conversations like this by submitting questions to our guests: https://www.patreon.com/cw/blueBellVillage

———

This episode is brought to you by Eugeria. Check out their website for dementia products you can trust.

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Disclaimer: This podcast is for general information only, not medical advice. Consult a qualified healthcare provider about your health. In an emergency, contact local emergency services. Guests’ views are their own and do not necessarily reflect those of Andrew Karesa or blueBell Village Ltd. Third-party references are for information only, not endorsements. You use this podcast at your own risk. Andrew Karesa, blueBell Village Ltd., and their team are not liable for any loss, injury, or damage arising from its use.

What if we could build a world that works better for people living with dementia?

In this episode, Andrew Karesa sits down with Valerie Larochelle, CEO and co-founder of Eugeria, to explore how better products, technology, environments, and communities can help people living with dementia maintain independence, autonomy, and quality of life.

Valerie’s work is deeply personal. Three of her four grandparents experienced cognitive impairment, including Alzheimer’s disease and vascular dementia. She shares what those experiences taught her about the difference between living with dementia and suffering from it, the realities families face navigating care, and why a dementia diagnosis does not mean that joy and meaningful life disappear.

Together, Andrew and Valerie explore how dementia care can move beyond simply monitoring people toward actually supporting them. Valerie explains how thoughtfully designed technologies, from adapted phones and calendar clocks to medication dispensers and emerging AI tools, can compensate for cognitive changes and help people continue doing things for themselves.

They also discuss the importance of bringing generations together, why children should not automatically be shielded from dementia, and what Valerie has learned from introducing her own children to family members living with cognitive impairment.

In this episode:

• Valerie’s family experience with Alzheimer’s disease and vascular dementia
• The difference between living with dementia and suffering from dementia
• Why dementia can look different for every family
• How Eugeria identifies and tests products for people living with dementia
• Why dementia technology should support independence, not just monitor people
• How cognitive aids can help people remain at home longer
• The potential for AI to compensate for cognitive changes
• Why children should be included in the lives of people living with dementia
• The importance of intergenerational communities
• Why Valerie believes there can still be joy and quality of life with dementia
• How LEGO, design, and creativity could play a role in building a better world for aging

This is a conversation about dementia, caregiving, innovation, independence, family, technology, and what it might look like to build a world designed to support people as their needs change, without losing sight of the person at the centre of it all. 

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Join The Village and help shape conversations like this by submitting questions to our guests: https://www.patreon.com/cw/blueBellVillage

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Disclaimer: This podcast is for general information only, not medical advice. Consult a qualified healthcare provider about your health. In an emergency, contact local emergency services. Guests’ views are their own and do not necessarily reflect those of Andrew Karesa or blueBell Village Ltd. Third-party references are for information only, not endorsements. You use this podcast at your own risk. Andrew Karesa, blueBell Village Ltd., and their team are not liable for any loss, injury, or damage arising from its use.

What happens when we stop avoiding conversations about death and start talking about what matters most?

In this episode, Andrew Karesa sits down with Lisa Pahl, licensed clinical social worker, end-of-life educator, healthcare and death doula, and CEO of The Death Deck, to explore why some of life’s most difficult conversations may also be the most important.

Drawing on nearly two decades of hospice experience and her own family’s journey with Alzheimer’s disease, Lisa shares why planning ahead is one of the greatest gifts we can give the people we love. She reflects on caring for her grandmother with dementia, the lessons she learned supporting her mother-in-law through cancer, and how those experiences inspired the creation of The Death Deck, The End-of-Life Deck, and The Dementia Deck.

Together, Andrew and Lisa discuss why families often avoid conversations about dementia and death, what happens when those discussions never occur, and how uncertainty can lead to conflict, guilt, and second-guessing during some of life’s hardest moments. They also explore hospice care, advance care planning, preserving personhood, caregiver support, and why preparing for the future is not about giving up hope but about giving families clarity.

This is a conversation about dementia, caregiving, hospice, family, grief, personhood, and the courage to have conversations before a crisis forces them.

In this episode:
• Why conversations about death should happen long before a crisis
• The lessons she learned caring for her grandmother with Alzheimer’s disease
• How families can prepare for difficult healthcare decisions
• Why preserving personhood matters throughout dementia
• What to look for when choosing a hospice provider
• Why advance care planning is a gift to your family
• How The Dementia Deck helps families start difficult conversations
• Why talking about death can help us live more intentionally

Whether you are caring for a parent, spouse, grandparent, friend, neighbour, or someone living with dementia, this conversation is a reminder that none of us can predict the future. But by having honest conversations today, we can help the people we love face tomorrow with greater confidence, compassion, and peace.

Learn more at:
⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.bluebellvillage.ca⁠⁠⁠⁠
https://thedeathdeck.com/

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Join The Village and help shape conversations like this by submitting questions to our guests: https://www.patreon.com/cw/blueBellVillage

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Disclaimer: The information shared in this podcast is for general informational purposes only and is not intended as medical advice. It should not be used to diagnose, treat, or prevent any medical condition. Always consult your physician or another qualified healthcare provider regarding any questions you may have about a medical condition or treatment. The views and opinions expressed by guests are their own and do not necessarily reflect those of Andrew Karesa, blueBell Village Ltd., or any of its employees, contractors, or team members.