By Mike Caputo
Lewis first recalled a time as a young man, strolling through the Manhattan streets on a clear evening with the skyscrapers and the moon looking down on him. The amateur artist revealed the true emotions behind the painting, which appeared to celebrate his childhood in Manhattan.
"Growing up in Manhattan to me was scary," Lewis said.
Then Lewis shifted to his other piece, an illustration of a dog and a basketball hoop sitting in the middle of a grassy field on a sunny day.
"Thinking of that relaxed me," Lewis said. "It made me happy."
Before hearing the story behind this particular artist, an art
enthusiast would wonder why these simple watercolor paintings are special.
That is because Lewis has Alzheimer's disease.
Lewis is one of six residents of the Woodmere Rehabilitation and Health Care Center participating in "Memories in the Making," a program designed by the Alzheimer's Association to promote creative expression from patients through simple water paintings. But more importantly, the hope of Woodmere Rehabilitation Center staff members is that the project would help the Alzheimer's patients remember their past.
"Not Picasso - we are looking for something special, for creativity," said Anthony Matese, the center's director of therapeutic rehabilitation. "It helps restore that moment."
"Memories in the Making" is a watercolor painting program offered to several assisted living facilities each year. Between November and May, participants worked on their projects once a week under the watch of recreational supervisors using supplies provided by the association. Then in May, the Alzheimer's Association put the projects on display in an art exhibit at the Plainview Holiday Inn.
Since the art exhibit, family and friends of the participants were so impressed with the program's results that they purchased the paintings, Matese said. Although the amateur artists received awards at the art exhibit, Matese said he felt it was important for them to present the work to the staff and patients at the rehabilitation center.
During an awards presentation held on July 20, Lewis was joined by fellow patients Artensey Carpenter, Mary Kreisman, Joseph Chabor, Marilyn Yole and Ruth McGrady.
The recreational therapists emphasized that there are a number of Alzheimer's patients at the center who are at the early stages of the disease and are still highly functional. Geraldine Berry, who has worked as a recreational therapist with Alzheimer's patients for nearly a decade, said the atmosphere created by the residents has been great, but achieving that requires patience from staff members.
"If you just throw things at them, you lose them," Berry said. "You have to be very patient with all of them. They are very good and the environment is calm."
Like Lewis's second painting, Carpenter looked back to a time of tranquillity and joy and portrayed a Christmas scene. According to Berry, Carpenter talks to the staff about how she misses decorating her home during the Christmas season.
"She speaks up and says she wants to go home," Berry said. "She starts knitting Christmas items. So that is very important to her."
Comments about this story? Mcaputo@liherald.com or (516) 569-4000 ext. 210.
