2025 Meagher Award Winner Annouced
Belleville, ON – A local Personal Support Worker (PSW) was presented with the Meagher Award for Excellence in Dementia Home Care this week at the Alzheimer Society of Hastings-Prince Edward office in Belleville.
Local families, co-workers, employers and organizations were able to nominate a PSW for this special community award and recognition. Nominations were accepted until April 21st, and submissions were received by a committee including ASHPE staff members Rachel Lewis (Operations and Program Manager), and Jessica Gagnon (Education and Support Coordinator), community member Elizabeth D’Anjou, and family representative Jenoa Meagher.
This year’s winner was Charies Gines. “Thank you so much for this award, it is so wonderful to be recognized. It just shows me that I am doing what I am meant to be doing!” said Gines during the award presentation.
The award consisted of a $500 prize and learning resources about dementia. The winner’s name will be displayed on a plaque in the Alzheimer Society office and Charies took home a framed certificate for her own display.
The funds for this award are generously provided by the Meagher family. Jean Meagher was a founding member of the Alzheimer Society of Belleville-Hastings-Quinte (now the Alzheimer Society of Hastings-Prince Edward), working tirelessly to build support groups and resources to help families traveling the Alzheimer journey. She was inspired by her husband’s illness, seeing the need for herself and for others to learn more about the disease and to share ideas for coping with the challenges that Alzheimer’s disease brings. The care that William received at home allowed Jean to pursue her dreams of creating an Alzheimer Society chapter, to support others living with dementia and to give herself a much-needed break. The Meagher family realized that the home care workers rarely received the recognition they deserve and wished to create a tribute to their work. The result is an award, named after Jean and William Meagher, to be presented to a candidate who is a qualified Personal Support Worker (PSW), caring for someone with dementia in the home in Hastings County, Prince Edward County or Brighton.
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The Alzheimer Society of Hastings-Prince Edward provides free navigation, education, support to individuals and families affected by all forms of memory loss, including dementia and Alzheimer’s disease. The Alzheimer Society of Hastings-Prince Edward has offices in Belleville, Picton and Bancroft and serves thousands of clients annually. For more information, please contact us at 613-962-0892 or visit www.alzheimer.ca/hpe
Media Contact: Amelia Huffman, The Alzheimer Society HPE amelia.huffman@alzheimerhpe.ca
Committee Contact: Rachel Lewis, The Alzheimer Society HPE Rachel.lewis@alzheimerhpe.ca
A huge thank you to InQuinte for their coverage and support:
https://inquinte.ca/story/local-psw-receives-meagher-award-for-excellence-in-dementia-home-care