Innovative Dinner Party Project at SF Campus for Jewish Living Reawakens Memory for Women with Dementia

SAN FRANCISCO, Jan. 15, 2026 /PRNewswire/ -- The San Francisco Campus for Jewish Living (SFCJL) will host an intimate dinner party, but this is no ordinary meal. It is the culmination of a groundbreaking project that utilizes food, scent, and storytelling to spark memories for women living with dementia.

This initiative harnesses the science of neuroplasticity and the emotional power of food to improve the quality of life for people with memory loss. By pairing personal culinary memories with conversation and shared experiences, the project offers a hopeful, human-centered complement to traditional dementia care.

The project is led by Jake Broder, Atlantic Fellow for Equity in Brain Health at the Global Brain Health Institute at UCSF and Trinity College Dublin. An accomplished actor and playwright, Broder brings a rare interdisciplinary approach to brain health, blending research and lived experience.

"Dementia can shrink a person's world," Broder said. "But food has the power to reopen doors we thought were closed."

Over two weeks, Broder works closely with four SFCJL residents, all women, engaging them in conversations about the foods that shaped their lives (family recipes, holiday meals, and dishes tied to identity). Together, they will recreate a meal from each woman's past. The focus on women is intentional: they often mask mild cognitive impairment longer, are diagnosed later, and once symptoms are evident, are more likely than men to experience faster progression to dementia.

The project culminates on January 21 at SFCJL at 4 pm with a "dinner party," where residents and their loved ones gather to share dishes and the stories behind them, transforming memory care into a shared, celebratory experience rather than a clinical one.

For SFCJL, the project serves as a poignant reminder that even in the face of memory loss, joy and connection remain profoundly accessible.

Media Contact: Angela Ingel, SFJL Director of Marketing, [email protected], 415.469.2244

About the Global Brain Health Institute (GBHI) - The GBHI is a leader in the global community dedicated to protecting the world's aging populations from threats to brain health. GBHI is based at the University of California, San Francisco (UCSF), and Trinity College Dublin. To learn more at www.gbhi.org

About the San Francisco Campus for Jewish Living (SFCJL) - The SFCJL is a leading senior services organization in Northern California, providing comprehensive and innovative care to older adults that fosters purpose, dignity, and joy. Learn more at www.sfcjl.org

SOURCE San Francisco Campus for Jewish Living