Golf Golf fore Life I discovered a program similar to Pennock’s in my hometown: Golf Fore Life. Created by the City of Kitchener in 2018, this program pairs players suffering from dementia with volunteer caddies who help them navigate playing nine holes together at a pair of municipally run courses ‒ Rockway Golf Course and Doon Valley Golf Course. The nine- or 10-week program runs for two days per week, throughout the summer. According to Alzheimer’s Disease International, someone in the world develops dementia every three seconds; globally, more than 57 million people live with the disease; Alzheimer’s is the most common form of this progressive neurodegenerative condition. With World Alzheimer’s Day occurring on September 21, this story felt timely; it’s yet another reminder of the myriad ways in which golf is so much more than a game. It’s a leisure activity that people of all ages, from five to 105, can enjoy. Golf not only forces participants to calm their mind but, as Pennock’s program proved, along with other scientific studies in recent years, it can also help those suffering from dementia or Alzheimer’s to get respite ‒ and to find joy ‒ in an activity which they once played before this ‘disease with no cure’ took hold, forcing them to quit. There are few of us who have not been affected by seeing a loved one suffer from one of these diseases. Reading about this innovative program resonated with me as I recalled the last years we had with my own grandmother, who lived to 95 years old; for her final five years, she lived on a secure floor in a retirement residence, suffering from dementia. I visited my Nana McPherson whenever I could. It was sad to witness her in this state of mental limbo not knowing who I was ‒ or where she was ‒ her mind forever wandering like someone lost in a Minotaur maze with no idea of where the exit was to return to the present. I wonder whether a round of golf might have helped Nana rediscover some joy and find some respite from the prison of her dementia-addled mind? CSANews | FALL 2026 | 45
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