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. Dr. Max Wallack founded Puzzles To Remember in 2008, and continues to act as an advisor and mentor. Hailey Richman is the Executive Director of PuzzlesToRemember. Since 2011, Hailey has been distributing puzzles to nursing facilities around the globe. Hailey is also the founder of KidCaregivers.com, where she provides advice for children dealing with dementia in their family members. Hailey has begun an international program called PuzzleTime which involves pairing youth members with people with Alzheimer's for an hour of shared jigsaw puzzle solving. Dr. Max Wallack 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.

Friday, June 21, 2013

Springbok PuzzlesToRemember Give Pleasure to Assisted Living residents ages 80 - 101

By Max Wallack

Puzzles to Remember

Below is a testimonial to how wonderfully the Springbok PuzzlesToRemember are being received. This was submitted by Nelle's (age 101) niece:

I just wanted you to know that your puzzles - the 36 piece for seniors - have been a WONDERFUL thing for my aunt and others at the assisted living. The residents on her floor have a table set up in the hallway where they come to work ONLY your puzzles. The size of the pieces and the sturdiness is a great help for these gals. Most are in their late 80s and one who is 96. May aunt is the oldest at 101! I have include a picture of my aunt Nelle working the “train puzzle”. The gals have Durango Express, Quilting Bee, and Goldfinch. Thank you again for making the day a little brighter for these women who, at this age, are mostly confined. This time together working on your puzzles not only helps with keeping there minds active, but gives them a chance to interact. Sometimes they just come out of their rooms and start working them on their own – and other times several join in. They work them over and over – each time with the same enthusiasm. I am so glad my 101 year old aunt finds pleasure in this activity. I enjoy watching and helping her – but most of the time she can do it on her own.

Here is a really inspiring photo of Nelle:

Max Wallack is a student at Boston University and a Research Intern in the Molecular Psychiatry and Aging Laboratory in the Department of Pharmacology and Experimental Therapeutics at

Boston University School of Medicine. 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.

Wednesday, June 19, 2013

Puzzles Bring Pleasure in Monterrey, Mexico

By Max Wallack

Puzzles to Remember

With the help of a wonderful, caring woman, Gaby C., I have been able to distribute much needed puzzles to some facilities in Mexico. Gaby not only brings the puzzles to nursing facilities, she brings her family members along and spends time doing the puzzles with the patients. Here are some pictures of Gaby's family members doing puzzles with the patients at Casa de Abuelos (House of Grandparents) in Monterrey, Mexico:

Here are photos of Gaby's family members with the patients at Casa de Reposo (House of Rest):

Thank you, Gaby, for the wonderful thing you are doing, bringing pleasure to these individuals. Your children's smiling faces are a testament to what a great affect this is having on their own lives.

Max Wallack is a student at Boston University and a Research Intern in the Molecular Psychiatry and Aging Laboratory in the Department of Pharmacology and Experimental Therapeutics at

Boston University School of Medicine. His great grandmother, Gertrude, suffered from

Tuesday, May 7, 2013

From the American Association for Geriatric Psychiatry's eNews:

Max Wallack
Puzzles to Remember

AAGP members in the news: Max Wallack

"AAGP's youngest member, Boston University student Max Wallack, was recently featured in an article on BU Today, the university's website. In "A 16-Year-Old Takes on a Disease of the Elderly," Wallack's work at the Laboratory of Molecular Psychiatry in Aging at BU's Alzheimer's Disease Center is featured. In March, Wallack presented a poster at the AAGP 2013 Annual Meeting on the role CE inhibitors could play in preventing Alzheimer’s disease."

Max Wallack is a student at Boston University and a Research Intern in the Molecular Psychiatry and Aging Laboratory in the Department of Pharmacology and Experimental Therapeutics at Boston University School of Medicine. 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.

Thursday, April 25, 2013

Alzheimer’s Program in San Diego

By Max Wallack
Puzzles to Remember
The University City Older Adult Center, in San Diego, offers a great day program for older adults. These adults have the opportunity to meet new friends and enjoy good conversations in a friendly environment.

Here are some of the benefits of this program:

Professional, caring staff
Social, educational, and recreational programs
Nutritionally-balanced kosher lunch
Excellent exercise classes
Sing-a-longs, dances, and live entertainment
Four hours of meaningful and enriching activities for older adults
Appropriate for older adults with early stages of dementia and Alzheimer's

This program operates, at a reasonable fee, on Tuesdays, Wednesdays, and Thursdays from 10 am to 2 pm.

PuzzlesToRemember recently supplied two of the Springbok PuzzlesToRemember to this program.

Here is the reaction from their activity director:

"The puzzles are terrific, the size, colors, and themes are extraordinary."

Of course, a picture is worth a thousand words, so here is a picture of a gentleman whose reaction says it all:

: •

Max Wallack is a student at Boston University and a Research Intern in the Molecular Psychiatry in Aging Laboratory in the Department of Pharmacology and Experimental Therapeutics at Boston University School of Medicine. 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.

Tuesday, April 2, 2013

Can Aerobic Exercise and Environmental Enrichment Slow Alzheimer's Disease?

By Max Wallack
PuzzlesToRemember

The benefits of aerobic activities for those with Alzheimer’s has been accepted for some time. Improving oxygen flow to the brain is good for us all.

Bob DeMarco, editor of the AlzheimersReadingRoom, has told us many times how much more alert and “more there” Dotty, his mom, was each time she emerged from the gym, even though Dotty had never gone to the gym until her late 80’s.

A new research article (Li et Al, 2013) is showing that, perhaps, Dotty improved so greatly from her trips to the gym were not despite the fact that she didn't start until her late 80’s, but because of that fact.

In this study, scientists who were already providing wild mice with a running wheel for exercise, decided to add a novel toy or object to explore to their cage each day. The results were amazing. While the mice doing aerobic exercise were less impaired when injected with amyloid beta from Alzheimer’s patients, those mice who were given the novel toys each day were significantly less impaired than those with the aerobic exercise alone.

Could it be that the novelty of going to the gym every day had a significant effect upon Dotty, above and beyond the exercise factor?

It looks like that is a very real possibility. We all know and have accepted the fact that following a familiar routine is best for those with Alzheimer’s disease. However, research shows that it is also important to add something novel to the daily routine.

Dotty’s trips to the Banana Boat were even more than getting into the bright light and socializing with those she knew. Meeting new people may have also been very good for her.

Now, I think back to our many trips with Great Grams. We took her everywhere with us. It was as if we continued to live our lives normally and included her, even when she was greatly impaired. I never really considered the fact that our trip to Hawaii, where she was amazed seeing, for the first time in her life, pineapples and bananas growing, may actually have slowed down her disease a bit. Perhaps my own life, bringing her along to weekly taekwondo sessions, provided beneficial novel experiences for her.

In the research paper, it states that “environmental enrichment” stimulates the hippocampus, the same area that is most impaired by Alzheimer’s disease. This meshes well with my convictions that puzzles of various kinds can be therapeutic.

So, along with a predictable, daily, comfortingly familiar schedule, we should also try to work in at least one novel experience daily. It can be a puzzle, a trip, a new story, coloring, or painting. It doesn't matter. What matters is the new experiences. And, of course, adding it to an aerobic activity reaps the most benefits.

Have your worked aerobic exercise into your daily caregiving routine? How about "environmental enrichment"?

What are you doing that seems to make the person living with dementia "more there", or happier?

Please tell us about it.

Max Wallack is a student at Boston University and a Research Intern in the Molecular Psychiatry and Aging Laboratory in the Department of Pharmacology and Experimental Therapeutics at Boston University School of Medicine. 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.

Wednesday, March 27, 2013

Over 80 Alzheimer’s Facilities Supplied With Puzzles in the Last Month

By Max Wallack
Puzzles to Remember

The last month has been very busy for PuzzlesToRemember. Springbok’s PuzzlesToRemember, specialized puzzles for those with Alzheimer’s, have been sent out to 21 Memory Cafes, 30 Alzheimer’s units, and 3 Adult Day Care Centers. In addition, new and gently used puzzles have been supplied to 31 nursing facilities around the globe, from France to the United States to Canada.

Many wonderful notes of appreciation were received.

From the Orchard House in Connecticut:

“Please know that your support will make it possible for us to provide social interaction for elderly individuals with Alzheimer’s from our area.”

From Willow Brook in Arkansas:

“Thank you so much for the puzzle donation! Our residents in the SCU love them! They really work and complete the puzzles because of the large puzzle pieces. Thanks again.)

From Bright Horizons in New York:

“I wish to express my sincere thanks for your donation of puzzles to our programs. They will be used and enjoyed by our many members, and your generosity is greatly appreciated.”

I also have been fortunate to be in touch with Gaby from Monterrey, Mexico. At Gaby’s suggestion, I will sending Springbok PuzzlesToRemember, and Gaby will distribute them to Alzheimer’s facilities in Mexico. Gaby really understands the value of puzzles. In addition to supplying puzzles to Alzeheimer's facilities, Gaby says,

“Once or twice a week some of my neighbors (children) come to my house to play with puzzles. (See attached photos.) I knew puzzles help to stimulate minds. And I wanted to help them to improve their grades and abilities having fun.”

Additionally, this month I was contacted by over a dozen individuals, whom I helped find locations in their area to which they could bring their gently used puzzles.

I am amazed that, just this month, I have been able to supply more puzzles than I did during the whole first year of PuzzlesToRemember!

Springbok and I have been consulting about the development of additional Alzheimer’s puzzles. In particular, many people have been requesting that we develop more images that would be appealing to men.

I also had the opportunity to give a research poster presentation at the American Association for Geriatric Psychiatry’s annual meeting in Los Angeles. It was a great experience, and I learned a great deal.

•

Sunday, January 20, 2013

Alzheimer's Puzzles - Sharing Joy!

By Max Wallack
Puzzles to Remember
Everyone knows that a picture can be worth a thousand words. These pictures say it all! Watch the faces as the puzzle gets completed!

•

Saturday, January 19, 2013

Smiles For Alzheimer's Patients

By Max Wallack

Puzzles to Remember

About a year ago, I was contacted by Gabe and Daniela Badescu, a couple that was caring for four Alzheimer’s patients in their facility in Temecula CA, called Temecu Hills Assisted Living.

They had been searching for beneficial activities for their patients, especially ones that might bring a sense of accomplishment. They asked if I knew of any puzzles that might meet this need.

In response, I sent 2 Springbok PuzzlesToRemember.

After using the puzzles, Gabe wrote:

"Hi Max - we received the puzzle you sent us - Thank you! I've attached a picture of one our residents enjoying the puzzle. It is very rewarding for our residents to be able to participate in an activity where they can achieve rather than fail. It leads to satisfaction rather than frustration".

From my several correspondences with the Badescus, I knew that they were providing the kind of care that every Alzheimer’s patient should have!

The Badescus have since founded another Alzheimer’s facility nearby, Vintage Hills Assisted Living. Their new website is www.seniornest.com, and their facebook page is www.facebook.com/comforteldercare.

Several new Springbok PuzzlesToRemember are on the way to their new facility, where the puzzles are being used for the most lofty purpose: they make Alzheimer’s patients smile.

Max Wallack is a student at Boston University and a Research Intern in the Molecular Psychiatry and Aging Laboratory in the Department of Pharmacology and Experimental Therapeutics at

Boston University School of Medicine. His great grandmother, Gertrude, suffered from

Tuesday, January 15, 2013

Alzheimer's Puzzles Donated in Honor of Dr. Martin Luther King's Legacy

By Max Wallack

Puzzles to Remember

This weekend, PuzzlesToRemember will be donating specialized Alzheimer's puzzles to twenty facilities in Georgia and Alabama to honor the legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King and his belief that everyone deserves equal treatment and respect.

Max Wallack is a student at Boston University and a Research Intern in the Molecular Psychiatry and Aging Laboratory in the Department of Pharmacology and Experimental Therapeutics at

Boston University School of Medicine. His great grandmother, Gertrude, suffered from

Monday, January 14, 2013

Alzheimer's Helpers

By Max Wallack
PuzzlesToRemember

One hundred and twenty five sixth through eighth graders in Northern Kentucky will collect puzzles and bring them to nursing facilities in Northern Kentucky.

At Brighton Center, in an impoverished area of Northern Kentucky, a program called Youth Leadership Development offers an extensive after school program for teens ages 9 - 15. In this program, the youth go over their entire 34 week school curriculum, and they are encouraged to think about the future, including college and career fields.

The students are also encouraged to become involved in community service projects, helping them build self-esteem, confidence, and leadership skills.

I am proud to announce that, under the direction of Michelle Bullis, the Coordinator to the Youth Leadership Development program, 125 students will become involved in the work of PuzzlesToRemember. After collecting puzzles, these students will have an opportunity to deliver these puzzles and interact with patients in nursing facilities. This will be a win-win situation with confidence being inspired on both sides!

Ms. Bullis also plans to bring in speakers to talk with the youth about Alzheimer's disease. Ms. Bullis says her project is about "the youth taking control and learning through experience."

The Brighton Center also offers these teens a wealth of other opportunities. They have collected school supplies for needy students. They maintain a community garden. They write thank-you cards to our veterans. They also have a teen coalition that focuses on anti-bullying awareness and a drug free lifestyle.

All this is taking place in an area where there are 3,000 homeless youth and young adults! Yet, these students improve their own lives by helping others. This is philanthropy at its best!

As these students collect and deliver their puzzles to nursing and Alzheimer's facilities, I will post photos of their project and their success. You can learn more about the Brighton Center here.
•