from the June 2016 Namaste Care Newsletter

Puppetry:

Last year, I met Marge Schneider who introduced me to using puppets to reach beyond the barriers of dementia and depression. She created a program that was the first of its kind in the U.S. for adults. Marge wrote a book “A HAND IN HEALING: The Power of Expressive Puppetry” that is a wonderful resource for anyone who would like to understand the value of how puppets can reach people of all ages and levels of functioning who may have difficulty communicating. Her stories are inspirational and help you learn how this powerful therapeutic healing tool can help you connect on a deep, authentic and intimate level, helping people find their voices and tell their stories. Her book, which I read and loved, is available on Amazon.com. So, I bought “Bella” and it has been almost miraculous how this puppet has helped to engage residents in Namaste Care. I hate to admit this, but in Iceland Bella was more popular than I was! The picture is of a man who did not talk to me but had a great conversation with Bella!

– by Joyce Simard, founder of Namaste Care™

Joyce Simard and her sheepdog puppet interacting with a man in Iceland