Dennis Center for Active Living outlines expansion plan, new digital lab and dementia-care partnerships

Brenda Vasquez, director of the Dennis Center for Active Living (DECAL), told the Select Board on June 30 that the center has entered its third year of full operations and is piloting evening programming, digital-equity services and dementia-care coordination.

“We have about 42 percent of the people in Dennis who are over 60,” Vasquez said, noting demand for respite, caregiver support and services that reduce premature institutionalization. DECAL has launched a digital-literacy lab with 14 laptop workstations, 12 tablets, 20 mobile hotspots and accessibility software to help residents navigate online services and scams.

Vasquez said the center has partnered with Elder Services of Cape Cod for the federal Medicare GUIDE pilot (a CMS initiative) to improve dementia care and caregiver support, and that early-stage dementia referrals and caregiver programming are growing. She described a one-evening-per-week after-hours pilot that has drawn a steady evening audience and said the lab will also support workforce-development training, resume-building and intergenerational programming.

Vasquez asked the board to consider staffing and budget requests as part of the FY28 process: “We have brought in over a half-million dollars through development work without touching one cent of the general fund,” she said. She added that sustaining expanded hours and new services will require a staffing plan and associated budget commitments the center will present to the board during the FY28 budget review.

Board members praised the center’s progress and asked for a copy of the presentation slides and additional cost estimates so they can evaluate staffing needs and possible rental-fee structures to support operations.