We had the pleasure of interviewing Tina Marie Ferguson, founder and creator of Artsy Smartsy. We talk about the story behind why Tina created Artsy Smartsy. We discuss how our world is in "lockdown" at the moment- Artsy Smartsy reaches our seniors in "lockdown" suffering from Alzheimers and dementia- how art is successful in reaching them and fighting loneliness and isolation. Tina shares with us all of the miracles that she has witnessed by art touching lives. We talk about the Montessori principles and how those are utilized. We dive into Dr. Gene Cohen and how his medical findings connect art with the brain. Stay tuned for Part 2 coming soon.

Tina Marie Ferguson is the founder, owner and head teacher of the award-winning senior education company, Artsy Smartsy, the largest for-profit senior art provider in Minnesota and Arizona, bring monthly art classes in ALL art mediums to seniors of all ages and abilities. She is the Executive Director of HeARTsy, a non-profit 502.c3 which brings FREE art classes to orphans, troubled youth, developmentally disabled, and families at risk in Phoenix, AZ. She is also a Certified Dementia Practioner and is apart of the International Council of Certified Dementia Practitioners. Tina has 45 years of daily art-making and a Master's degree in Architecture from ASU, Tina has made art and design a lifelong passion. Artsy Smartsy began over 11 years ago in Minnesota and now includes over 500 seniors who reside in assisted living, memory care, veterans homes, group homes, Parkinson's day programs, hospitals, and community library programs. Half of her students suffer from Parkinson's disease and Alzheimers. Tina Marie Ferguson has served on many committees and regularly speaks to healthcare professionals on the benefits of arts and aging. Artsy Smartsy has received many awards including an honorable mention from the International Council of Certified Dementia Practitioners and Center for Applied Research in Dementia.

Host Nicole Will is the founder of willGather and holds a B.S. Degree in Human Services: Social Gerontology and an ADC Certification with NCCAP.

*We are not medical professionals and are not providing medical advice. If you have any medical questions, we recommend that you talk to a medical professional of your choice. willGather has taken care in selecting its speakers but the opinions of our speakers are theirs alone. Thank you for your continued interest in our podcast. Please subscribe for updates.