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Have you ever thought about writing a book? We all have stories inside of us, but most of us do not take the time to put our stories down on paper. Well, November is the time to do just that. This month, Shreve Memorial Library is joining would-be authors and libraries around the country in celebrating National Novel Writing Month and encouraging all to write their next novel at the library.

Over 100 family caregivers and health professionals came together for The Bridge Alzheimer's & Dementia Resource Center’s Second Annual Education Conference, with the theme, “A Positive Approach to Dementia.” The all-day conference was held Friday, Nov. 4, at First United Methodist Church. With the elderly population growing and dementia on the rise, more family members are finding themselves in a caregiver role. The conference kicked off with “Coffee & Conversation” with Meghan Harris, MD, local neurologist who provided answers to the most frequently asked questions about Alzheimer’s and then fielded questions from the audience. Keynote speaker, Beth Nolan, PhD, from the Teepa Snow Foundation, gave the attendees much to think about as she explained how the brain shrinks with dementia and how to use a positive approach with the dementia individual. Vision changes plays an important factor in knowing how to communicate due to the decrease in safety awareness for the dementia individual. Slides from Nolan’s presentation can be found on the Teepa Snow website and will be available for two weeks past the conference date. Local speaker and gerontologist, Stacey Hand, followed the keynote presentation with additional information on how to deal with unmet needs of the dementia individual. “You have to become a detective at times,” said Hand, “in order to understand what they are trying to communicate to you.” Other local speakers included Dr. Carl Rhoads with First United Methodist Church, Elizabeth Disbrow, PhD, Center for Brain Health; and Evelyn Pryor, MD, with LSU Health Shreveport. The 20 exhibitors from local businesses and organizations specializing in memory or senior care played a vital part of the conference as attendees were given opportunities throughout the day to visit and ask questions. “The information and the insight provided by all our speakers can be used by anyone involved in any type of caregiving,” said Paulette Freeman, executive director of The Bridge. “There are so many complex needs, and we were given various techniques to help us in our journey with caring for someone with Alzheimer’s.”

Ok, if you have a Christmas elf outfit—for whatever reason—what’s the best time to wear it? How about doing a good deed for the Salvation Army? That was my goal in Dec. 2017—actually Sat., Dec 23. I signed up to be a volunteer kettle ringer.

LSU Shreveport’s Noel Memorial Library has been awarded the LOUIS Library of the Year Award, which recognizes a LOUIS member library that demonstrates excellence in at least one of the following areas: service to their community; creativity and innovation in developing specific community programs or a dramatic increase in library usage; leadership in creating programs that can be emulated by other libraries. LOUIS is a consortium of public and private college and university libraries in the state of Louisiana. This partnership was formed in 1992 by the library deans and directors at these institutions, in order to create a cost-effective collaboration among the institutions for the procurement of library technology and resources.

The Centenary Wind Ensemble, in collaboration with the Bossier Parish Community College Band, presents its Fall 2022 concerts Sunday, Nov. 13 at 7:30 p.m. in the sanctuary of First Baptist Church Shreveport and Tuesday, Nov. 15 at 7:30 p.m. at Asbury United Methodist Church in Bossier City. The concerts are free and open to the public. Thomas Hundemer of Centenary and Joshua Waldrop of BPCC share conducting duties for the •Fall Festivals' program. The repertoire includes Shostakovich's Festive Overture, Dan Welcher's epic Americana Zion, the Mexican Donzon No.2 by Arturo Marquez, and Mussorgsky's grimly brilliant 'Coronation Sce.ne' from his opera Boris Godunov. The concerts open with a traditional march, John Philip Sousa's Block Horse Troop, and include Frank Ticheli's moving and sentimental Loch Lomond and Vaclav Nelhybel's Chorale, based on a medieval Bohemian chant.

The human heart is an engine, a powerhouse that keeps all of us alive. And for almost a century, the American Heart Association (AHA) has been at the forefront of cardiac research.

After many years of west- facing sun, the Uneeda Biscuit art on the side of the Vordenbauman-Eastham Company building (yes, that is the actual name of the building) at 711 Milam Street is being repainted! The company rehabbing the historic structure tapped Artistic Shark Chris Opp to do the work high in the sky.

The biggest event in worldwide sports will kick off on Nov. 20 in Qatar as the 2022 World Cup will begin. The groups have been announced for the event and are as follows: Group A – Ecuador, Netherlands, Qatar and Senegal Group B – England, IR Iran, USA and Wales Group C – Argentina, Mexico, Poland and Saudi Arabia Group D – Australia, Denmark, France and Tunisia Group E – Costa Rica, Germany, Japan and Spain Group F – Belgium, Canada, Croatia and Morocco Group G – Brazil, Cameroon, Serbia and Switzerland Group H – Ghana, Korea Republic, Portugal and Uruguay The first match will take place on Nov. 20 with host country Qatar taking on Ecuador. The USA will play its first match the next day on Nov. 21 versus Wales.