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Puzzles To Remember

PUZZLES TO REMEMBER is a 501(c)3 organization that provides puzzles to nursing homes, veterans facilities, and other facilities that care for Alzheimer's and dementia patients. Puzzles To Remember was founded in 2008 by Max Wallack, who recognized the calming effect of puzzles and many other benefits on people suffering from Alzheimer’s disease. Max graduated from Boston University, Summa Cum Laude, in 2015, and from Harvard Medical School in 2020.

Beginning in 2020, Hailey Richman is the Executive Director of PuzzlesToRemember. Since 2011, Hailey has been distributing puzzles to nursing facilities around the globe. Hailey also spends time doing the puzzles with nursing home residents. She always brightens their days.  Hailey is also the founder of KidCaregivers.com, where she provides advice for children dealing with dementia in their family members. Hailey has begun a program called PuzzleTime which involves volunteer students going to nursing facilities and doing puzzles with their residents. Max serves as a mentor to the KidCaregivers program.

If you have puzzles that you would like to donate, please contact us at Puzzles2Remember@gmail.com and we will find a location near you where you can bring your puzzles. We can also provide you with a donation letter so that you can claim the value of your puzzles as a tax deduction.

To see a short video from WCVB Ch. 5 "BOSTON STRONG" about Max's efforts on behalf of Alzheimer's patients, click here.

To see a short video about Hailey's Puzzle Time Program, click here.

Wednesday, September 8, 2010

PuzzlesToRemember Continues Its Mission to Provide Puzzles for Facilities Caring for Alzheimer’s Patients

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By Max Wallack
Puzzles to Remember

By now, PuzzlesToRemember has provided close to 5,000 puzzles to facilities located throughout all 50 states, as well as parts of Canada and Mexico.

Originally, I personally delivered all puzzles myself to each facility. Then, I began applying for small grants to help with the cost of shipping puzzles. Several corporations, including Stop and Shop, Harvard Pilgrim Health, and DoSomething (American Express) all provided small grants for this purpose.

After some time, I also took on the role of a “puzzle broker”. People and companies called me with puzzles to donate. I then researched facilities in their areas, and I arranged for them to deliver the puzzles to Alzheimer’s facilities near where they lived. I derived great satisfaction from this role. Everyone was happy: surplus puzzles found their way to where they were really used and needed.

A few weeks ago, I decided to, once again, deliver puzzles personally. I guess I was missing the satisfying personal interaction that often takes place when I deliver puzzles. I set out, with a car full of puzzles, to Western Massachusetts. I had a list of about 6 facilities that I planned to deliver puzzles to.

After delivering to the first three, I kept noticing additional facilities along the route. For instance, there was a veteran’s care facility that I had been unaware of. I stopped, and I delivered puzzles there. Then, I happened to pass the Applewood facility in Amherst MA. It was a large facility, and I decided to bring the remaining puzzles there.

The staff at Applewood was very welcoming. I spent about 20 minutes there. It was obviously a good facility, quite clean, with a caring staff. It let me relive the feeling of seeing how much good the puzzles can do. By surprise, a few days after I returned home, I received a thank you note and a check for $25 from Applewood. I had never even suggested that they make any donation, but their generosity will provide shipping funds for puzzles to other facilities.

Max Wallack is a student at Boston University Academy. His great grandmother, Gertrude, suffered from Alzheimer's disease. Max is the founder of PUZZLES TO REMEMBER. PTR is a project that provides puzzles to nursing homes and veterans institutions that care for Alzheimer's and dementia patients.

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PUZZLES TO REMEMBER was founded in 2008 by Max Wallack, in memory of his great-grandmother, Gertrude Finkelstein, who died of Alzheimer's disease in 2007.
Puzzles To Remember is registered in Massachusetts as a public charity. Contributions are welcome, and are tax deductible under sec. 501(c.)3 of the Internal Revenue Code.

For more information, write to us at Puzzles2Remember@gmail.com