(Image: "News Travels" by Donna Beveridge)
New watercolorist Donna Beveridge paints the reality of living with Alzheimer’s disease. Speaking volumes with her watercolors, applying blues and purples – her favorites – as well as yellows and greens in her “communicative process” Beveridge lets people know that she and others with Alzheimer’s disease still have much to offer and many needs to be recognized. She is a regular in Judith Kinsman's watercolor classes, offered through the Saco Museum. Says Kinsman, “…there is a thread of purple through all of her painting and purple is a spiritual color.” Purple is not a surprising choice for someone who infuses soul into every waking moment even with the troubled road ahead.
With support, including that of her partner Betsy Pace, Beveridge is facing the twists and turns of that road, navigating a colorful and hopeful path forward. “I am painting the story of my journey with dementia. I don’t know that I have a particular message other than that I am a person. I will continue being a person no matter how far along this journey I am, and I hope to provide a voice while I can for those who cannot speak for themselves,” she says.
When 67 year old Beveridge was first diagnosed with early-stage Alzheimer’s disease nearly three years ago, the retired elementary school teacher and literacy specialist was running a small non-profit she co-founded called Time Bank, an entity allowing members to barter their talents and services. Her organizational skills began failing, which led her to seek the diagnosis. She had to give up the Time Bank. “That was the passion of my retirement and so I was devastated,” Beveridge says.
Her first neurologist offered neither comfort nor resources when rendering the diagnosis. He avoided eye contact as if Beveridge was not there and looked only at Pace. “He basically said plan to be in a nursing home in two to seven years. I'll see you in six months. Perhaps he was competent but he was not an empathetic kind of person,” she says. Not to be dismissed, Beveridge began to search for resources, educate herself and advocate for supportive recognition for herself and others with Alzheimer’s. Today, she is under the care of a new physician and follows a regimen of vitamins, supplements and walking.
Beveridge remains active in her church, coordinating the monthly coffeehouse and participating in a small group ministry. She is part of an Alzheimer’s support group sponsored by Maine Medical Center (MMC). The group meets twice a month and is an important source of education, encouragement and hope. “We learn from one another how to live with dementia,” she says. In addition to the MMC group, she belongs to another group offered by the Maine chapter of the Alzheimer’s Association, the leading voluntary health organization for Alzheimer’s care, support and research. Her partner Betsy attends a group for caregivers.
In her advocacy, she has donated paintings to fundraisers for the Alzheimer’s Association. She has told her story and shared a slide show of her paintings to support groups, the Geriatric Conference and Alzheimer’s Breakfast of Champions. She is featured in the Maine Public Broadcasting series, “Caring for the Caregivers.” Recently, she submitted two of her paintings to “A Matter of Perceptions,” an exhibit sponsored by VSA Arts of Maine, an organization offering arts, educational and cultural opportunities for children and adults with disabilities.
And Beveridge immerses herself in painting. Her daughter Darcy first encouraged her just to try it, even offering her mom the money saved up in the cookie jar to pay for classes. With her brush, Beveridge shares the news that she and others with Alzheimer’s disease need understanding and support. For the foreseeable future, Beveridge will keep painting in the studio she created in her home. It keeps her focused. “I always draw at home, paint until I get stuck, and then I take paintings to class and say help,” she says. “I want to learn more about the painting, and Judith teaches me just what I need to learn.”
Studies show that activity and support groups along with other aspects of active medical care improve quality of life for people at all stages of the disease, according to the Alzheimer’s Association. Visual art is used to engage people with dementia and their caregivers in social settings at many museums. The Artists for Alzheimer's Association TM or ARTZ, co-founded by John Zeisel, PhD, and Sean Caulfied, assists museums in developing special tours. Zeisel's book, "I'm Still Here" about caring for people with Alzheimer's inspired Beveridge to approach Portland Museum of Art (PMA) and, with the support of the Alzheimer's Association, the PMA piloted a program this year for Alzheimer's patients and caregivers.
“One of the lessons for me learning to live with Alzheimer’s is how to live in the present. I was always a planner, always looking into the future. I was always going fast,” Beveridge says. “I did not always live in the present real well. And that is what I am learning to do and I think that is a real gift. I am better off than I was a couple of years ago,” she says. With the help of medication, attitude and involvement in living, Beveridge says “I am not looking at life as if it’s tragic. Besides, I am at an early stage. There is much that’s good and gifts for me to discover.”
With her art Beveridge connects all her passions to the here and now.
Anne Gamble
bytheriver@roadrunner.com
Donna Beveridge appeared in an MPBN documentary about the challenges of caring for a loved one with dementia and Alzheimer's disease (click here to see the program).
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