Singing helps folks reclaim memories at Winooski’s senior center

By Holly Sullivan for Community News Service, a University of Vermont journalism internship.

The crowd sipped water, prepping their vocal chords as they watched the lyrics to “Silly Love Songs” by Wings, and a photo of its singer Paul McCartney, glow on the projector ahead of them.

As the piano track rang out, Karen McFeeters encouraged the over a dozen people gathered in the Winooski Senior Center that early October day to “boogie in your seats” as she danced around the room. The group swayed, held hands and belted lyrics they recognized. 

Mike, a McCartney fan who requested the song, tapped his foot to the beat in the front row, singing every word. 

That was the scene Oct. 4 at a session of “Singing for People With Memory Loss and Their Caregivers,” an event series created by McFeeters and Sheila Reid that just celebrated its one-year anniversary. The series is sponsored by Age Well, a nonprofit organization for senior citizens in northwestern Vermont. 

Reid, a 24/7 caregiver to a man named Ray, wanted a way for him to be involved in a musical activity.

“(He) has a lot of trouble speaking, but he can sing you Bob Dylan songs,” she said.

Back in 2014, McFeeters founded Aphasia Choir of Vermont, a choir for folks who’ve survived strokes and traumatic brain injuries. Reid and McFeeters, who worked at a hospital together for many years, decided to create a similar group for people with memory loss. 

Read the full article on the Community News website.