We run special writing workshops that help people of all ages author and preserve their memories, with a special emphasis on those with Alzheimer’s and dementia. SBYF memories are inscribed on postcards, illustrated, then mailed to the participant’s children and grandchildren. A copy is also archived in the vault at the Free Library of Philadelphia, so they will never be lost.
Why do we do this? Because we wish – so very badly – that a program like this had been around when our loved ones were struggling with Alzheimer’s. We do it because we believe that too often history can become a blurry, dangerous abstraction, and only through art can our words and voices transcend time. And we do it because we love it.
Previously, the only way to experience SBYF was to attend our workshops or bump into us out on the road. But now you can author and preserve your memories for your own family, and archive them in our Memory Library. In the process, you will be helping to raise awareness about Alzheimer’s and dementia.
Oh, and here’s the other thing: our workshops are a component of our larger, admittedly-ridiculous mission…which is to capture and preserve every single possible human experience. You laugh, but over the past few years we’ve been driving all across America, and have personally handed postcards to over 20,000 strangers. So you want to know What It Was Like to See Abraham Lincoln Walk Into Your Army Camp? We can tell you, because we found the oldest man on earth, and he shared a memory of his grandfather, a Civil War soldier. And you want to know What It Was Like To Get a New Pair of Shoes During The Depression, or What it Was Like to Be in New Orleans During Hurricane Katrina, or What It Was Like To Get Dumped Last Tuesday…we can tell you those, too.
Lately we’ve had a feeling that we’ve been missing something…that some memories had been lost, or misplaced…
SBYF’s mission is
to share wisdom
between generations,
foster connectedness,
support families
struggling with
Alzheimer’s disease
& related dementias.
As William McNamee struggled with Alzheimer’s, he feared that everything he’d experienced would be lost.
He found the answer in the unlikeliest of places, and he shared the secret with his grandson, Matthew, so they would always be connected.
