Hilary Lee, President (left) & Jane Verity, Founder (right) of Spark Of Life Spark of Life Philosophy is a way of being with the highest intent to lift the spirit, awaken dormant abilities and heal relationships. The focus is on How to connect, How to communicate and How to care. The aim is to foster kindness, compassion, empathy, respect and an attitude of unconditional love.
The philosophy is about redefining what it means to have dementia, opening up new possibilities for improvement. It is also about revitalizing the culture of care, enriching the quality of life for people with dementia and giving joy and renewed energy to carers.
Watch the Spark of Life Philosophy in action as implemented by trained facilitators.
The philosophy operates as a profound empowerment program, which elicits the best in people who may have been given up on by society. It is now successfully implemented in many diverse cultures and is also being embraced in fields such as palliative care, mental health, intellectual disability, education and in aged and dementia design.
TWO MOTHERS By Joann Snow Duncanson
I had two mothers – two mothers I claim; two different people, yet with the same name. Two separate women, diverse by design, but I loved them both for they were both mine.
The first was the mother who carried me here; she gave birth and nurtured and launched my career. She was the woman whose features I bear, complete with the facial expressions I wear.
She gave me memories which follow me yet, along with examples in life which she set. As I became older, she some younger grew, and we’d laugh just as mothers and daughters can do.
But then came the year that her mind clouded so and it seemed that the mother I’d known soon would go. So quickly she changed and turned into the other – a stranger who dressed in the clothes of my mother.
Oh, she looked the same then, at least at arm’s length, but she was a child now and I was her strength. So we’d come full circle, we women three – my mother the first, the second, and me.
Now if my own children should reach such a day when a new mother comes and the old goes away, I’d ask of them nothing that I wouldn’t do – love both of your mothers as both have loved you
Originally developed in the field of Dementia Care and internationally awarded by IAHSA that represents 30 countries this philosophy is now spreading throughout 5 continents. Elders from indigenous cultures around the world have also embraced the philosophy to support their native people with dementia and their families.
The widespread implementation of the Spark of Life Philosophy highlights its universal application within diverse cultures and shows how in essence, as human beings, we all have the same needs.
New Fields
If you are a leader in your field and are interested in implementing the Spark of Life Philosophy in other fields of life, please contact us on info@dementiacareinternational.com – we would love to talk with you
