India’s first International Master Practitioner in Dementia Care

India’s first International Spark of Life Master Practitioner in Dementia Care

Congratulations to Ms. Nilanjana Maulik (National Coordinator Working Group ARDSI) and Mr. Sailesh Mishra (Founder President Silver Innings Group and A1Snehanjali ) for being First Indian to be conferred renowned 'Spark of Life' International Master Practitioner in Dementia Care at Perth, Australia on 19th May 2017.

Mr Sailesh Mishra is Mumbai’s first International Spark of Life Master Practitioner and Ms. Nilanjana Maulik is Kolkata city’s first International Spark of Life Master Practitioner.

Mr Mishra has just returned back to India after undertaking a 3 week intensive master course in Perth, Western Australia on the Spark of Life Philosophy.

‘The Spark of Life International Master Course, its magnificent holistic philosophy for Dementia Care, has not only enriched me but also empowered me about dementia care and to be better human being’, Mr Mishra said on his return.

The Spark of Life Philosophy
‘The Spark of Life Philosophy offers a practical and sustainable way of enriching the lives of people with dementia, their families and carers and transforming the culture of care. The focus is on How to connect, How to communicate and How to care.

The philosophy is about the quality of the connection between the carer and the person with dementia and aims at fostering kindness, compassion, empathy, respect and an attitude of unconditional love in the interactions between families or care staff and clients,’ Mr Mishra explained.

Implementing the Spark of Life Philosophy into an organisational culture has been proven to enrich the lives of people with dementia enabling them to experience improvements in mental abilities, language, self-esteem, social interactions and emotional well-being.
For information on the international Spark of Life Master Course for pioneering leaders held in Perth Western Australia please go to www.dementiacareaustralia.com


About Mr Sailesh Mishra
Sailesh is a Social Entrepreneur and a renowned Social Activist working for the welfare of Senior Citizens and People with Dementia. He is also a certified Spark of Life Master Practitioner.

After 15 years of working in the corporate world in marketing he made a complete shift to dedicating his life to creating an Elder Friendly World where Ageing becomes a Positive and Rewarding Experience and in April 2008 Sailesh founded his organization Silver Innings to achieve just that. For his selfless in Ageing he has been awarded Karmaveer Puraskaar National award.  

Sailesh has been part of National and State level prominent TV Talk show on Ageing and Dementia, he was also twice part of International Radio talk show on Dementia.

He has been to Malta twice on scholarship for UN INIA 15 day’s course on Social Gerontology and International Policy and Participated in Prestigious UN OEWG on Ageing at New York.

In Aug 2013 Sailesh set up Mumbai City’s first 24 x 7 Dedicated Assisted Living Elder Care Home 'A1 Snehanjali' in Nalasopara West and in 2016 the second home  'A1 Snehanjali' in Virar.


About: Mrs. Nilanjana Maulik
Mrs. Nilanjana Maulik is Secretary of Alzheimer’s and Related Disorders Society of India (ARDSI) Kolkata Chapter & National Coordinator, Working Group ARDSI. She has done her Master's Degree, Dementia Studies from The University of Stirling, and  Successful Aging & End of Life Care from Stanford University School of Medicine Mini Fellowship, she is also Board Member of Commonwealth Association of Aging.

Mrs. Nilanjana Maulik since 1999 is involved with ARDSI and is instrumental in starting Kolkata city’s first Dementia Day care center and also runs counselling, care support, memory clinic, training for home carers, home visit, day care for dementia person, etc, and  helpline. She is strong advocate of rights and care of person with dementia.

She has won National Award Winner ARDSI: BEST DEMENTIA CARE WORKER, 2006

Forget yourself for others, and others will never forget you.

Mumbai base Social Activist Sailesh Mishra Conferred 'KARMAVEER JYOTI’ 2016 National Karmaveer Puraskaar

We are extremely delighted to share that Shri Sailesh Mishra Founder of Silver Innings, a social enterprise working with Senior Citizens has been conferred the prestigious 'KARMAVEER JYOTI - the highest iCONGO Karmaveer Global Award for Social Justice and Citizen Action' at New Delhi on 26^th Nov 2016.

Sailesh was felicitated the coveted ‘Karmaveer Jyoti’ Golden Puraskar’ award on the 26th of November at Delhi Public School, Gurgaon, New Delhi at the exclusive awards function which is a part of “iCONGO’s RIGHT every WRONG conclave” a national forum for social justice and citizen action where various social justice issues are discussed by very eminent and concerned citizens.

Sailesh Mishra, Son of Million Parents is a Social Entrepreneur and Mentor, Founder of Silver Innings®  a community dedicated to Senior Citizens in India. Through his organisation Silver Innings (since April 2008) he is working towards creating Elder Friendly World where Ageing becomes a Positive and Rewarding Experience. He has left his well-paid corporate job to work for his passion to work with Senior Citizens, which he believes is the most neglected and ignored segment. His work in the field of Dementia is worth to be commended. Having delved deep into the lives of the aged and understanding their challenges,  their emotional needs, their wishes and their aspirations and hopes, he was felt compelled to start ‘A1 Snehanjali’ Mumbai city First 24 x 7 Assisted Living Elder Care Home and also started Innovative program promoting Talent and Companionship among Elders. He effectively uses his Social Media, PR, Networking & Advocacy skills to outreach people of all ages around globe for the cause, making Silver Innings group pioneer in Asia Pacific region for using ICT. His vision for an elder-friendly world has garnered support from individuals and organizations across society. A belief that these silver-haired, golden-hearted people deserve to enjoy their “second childhood” with dignity, respect and care has driven Sailesh Mishra and his team of committed souls to reach out to seniors in as many ways as possible.

His dream is of India being global leader in the Holistic sphere of the globe, a network beyond borders, between technology, innovations and a socio-psychological approach. His dream is of a society where all generations are empowered, they are independent to choose and decide their careers and future. He foresee a growth in start-ups and social entrepreneurs for today’s youth and tomorrow seniors.

This award is given to Individual of extraordinary work for the society, by iCONGO – Indian Confederation of NGOs. iCONGO team of Advisors, Mentors and all our VOLUNTEERS, we congratulate Sailesh Mishra on his selection for the Karmaveer Puraskaar- Global Awards for Social Justice and Citizen Action. He was also welcomed as Karmaveer Noble Laureate 2015-16. It was great privilege to have him as an integral part of the REX and Karmaveer community and the Joy of Giving and Right every Wrong Movement.

In the year 2008, Sailesh Mishra was Awarded the coveted ‘Karmaveer Puraskar’ for his commendable work in the field of social service, especially for Senior Citizens.

The ‘Karmaveer Puraskar’ is a national award for Social Justice & Citizen Action. The award is instituted by iCONGO – Indian Confederation of NGOs – the people sector association- in partnership with government, business, media, civil society and other sectors and leading global and national organisations which over the years include institutions like TISS, BCCI, NASSCOM FOUNDATION, PHDCCI, CMS, RAI, UNMC, UNODC, The art of living, UNDP, World Bank, UNFPA, GTZ, WOTR, Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation, NDTV, Business World, Outlook and various others.

KARMAVEER PURASKAAR was created in 2006 by the people sector through iCONGO to recognize only individual citizens from all sectors (media, corporate, government, civil society, performing arts, professionals who have been pivotal for “being and leading the change” beyond their personal daily lives and business as usual by being committed on individual levels to work for social justice issues with proactive citizen action. The awards are given to individuals from various sectors for their contribution to promote social justice through citizen action. The basic philosophy of the awards is based on Gandhiji’s “Be the change you want to see in the world” and given to citizens who go beyond being apathetic and believe in doing their bit for social justice and know that it is “better to light a candle than to curse the darkness”. Past awardees include living legends and some eminent citizens like Verghese Kurien, Anu Aga, James Michael Lyngdoh, Vikram Akula, M. S. Swaminathan, Alyque Padamsee.

Know more about Silver innings: http://www.silverinnings.in/

Know more about Sailesh Mishra: https://saileshmishra.net/

Forget yourself for others, and others will never forget you.

Book Review: Karma Kurry for the mind, body, heart and soul

Karma Kurry for the mind, body, heart and soul,  By Jeroninio Almeida and Jyoti Nanda, published by JAICO. Contact Authors at: jerrylearns2learn121@gmail.com

This is a very interesting and timely book and on the efforts of seemingly common people, who were courageous enough to take the first step. It is a compendium of 26 brief biographical sketches of people from various walks of life. These people excelled in their chosen vocation, but decided to go further and contribute to society. They had the vision and courage to look beyond narrow self-development and work for the less privileged, poor and or voiceless. 

The biographers have done an excellent job of writing succinct and inspiring accounts of the lives of these real heroes/heroines. The editors have done an equally commendable job of selecting the widest possible array of work and level of intervention and background and context of work. It includes stories ranging from environmental protection to innovative education to medical intervention and provision of care services; those who worked at international level to those who made a difference at the level of a village or town; from celebrities to the least known names. But, the common thread that ran across all the stories is the sensitive heart that gets affected by the misery of others, passion to make a difference, struggle to achieve what one believes in and innovation. 

All stories are outstanding and inspiring in their own way; but those that inspire the most are about the struggle of disadvantaged people who rose to the challenges life threw at them, overcame and continued to strive to help others in similar situations. Those that deserve special mention are the stories of Subhashini Mistry, herself a poor uneducated widow who struggled hard to raise her family and made good of her resolve to start a hospital in her hometown; Javed Ahmad Tak, who despite his 100% Disability, decided to help others and also continued to attempt improve his own skills; a true story of “Never Say Die” spirit.  Lakshamn Singh’s single-handed and gritty efforts to deal with water scarcity in his village and consequent poverty and DrChikholalThangsing’s efforts to provide compassion and care to victims of AIDS; Sailesh Mishra’s untiring endeavors to create awareness and facilities for the least understood diseases in India that afflict older persons i.e. Alzheimer’s Disease(dementia) are inspiring. 

This book is like a ray of hope in this atmosphere of overwhelming pessimism. It is certainly curry for mind, heart and soul. It satiates the hunger for positive examples of human courageand compassion and instills a sense of confidence in the reader that all is not lost yet! It evokes the mind to think about the real meaning of human life which is way beyond running endlessly to fulfill one’s ever increasing desires, heart to beat for the others especially the disadvantaged and the soul to find fulfillment.

This is recommended for reading by all especially children and young adults who need to be encouraged by the lives of Real Heroes/Heroines who work selflessly for the betterment of other human beings!  

Anupama Datta

Director

Policy Research and Development

HelpAge India

Email: anupama@helpageindia.org

Forget yourself for others, and others will never forget you.