#83 - Caregiving, Grief and Dating with Brooke James and Katie Brandt

This week, Maria is talking about caregiving, grief and dating with Brooke James and Katie Brandt.

Brooke James is a highly respected podcaster in the field of grief and loss based in New York City. She is a sought-out grief educator who consults with companies and organizations seeking to create empathetic and supportive work environments, particularly during this time of unprecedented loss. She currently works at Aidaly, a startup focused on paying family caregivers, and previously worked in management consulting. Brooke holds a B.A. in Economics from The George Washington University. Brooke is passionate about arts and public programming in New York. She serves on the Steering Committee of the Lincoln Center Young Patrons as co-chair of the Development Committee. As one of the many people that have been affected by cancer, Brooke is highly involved in fundraising for the advancement of cancer research and treatment. Brooke participates in Memorial Sloan Kettering's fundraiser for rare cancer research and has raised over $25,000 since 2018.

Follow Brook on Instagram:

http://instagram.com/brookeljames http://instagram.com/the_griefcoach

Learn more about Brook at http://thegriefcoach.co

Katie Brandt is the Director of Caregiver Support Services and Public Relations in the Frontotemporal Disorders (FTD) Unit at Massachusetts General Hospital. Katie provides leadership for research, education and community events aimed at supporting the caregiver experience for families impacted by Alzheimer's Disease, Frontotemporal Disorders, atypical and young-onset dementias. Katie was Co-Chair of the National Alzheimer's Project Act (NAPA) Advisory Council on Alzheimer's Research, Care and Services (2019 – 2021) where she had the opportunity to connect with experts in the field of Alzheimer's Disease and related dementias and contribute to federal policy initiatives and research priorities promoting health equity and person-centered care at every stage of dementia. Katie is a passionate advocate in the rare disease and dementia community, inspired by her experience as a former FTD caregiver for her late husband, Mike. Today, Katie is an Alzheimer's caregiver for her father, Tom. Her experiences of love and loss embolden her to keep moving forward, determined that the cure of tomorrow is not so far from the care of today.

Learn more about Katie at http://KatieBrandt.org

Follow Maria on Instagram to find out when the Matchmaker Hotline will be open to talk! http://instagram.com/matchmakermaria

Follow Agape Match on Instagram at http://instagram.com/agapematch

Follow the podcast on Instagram at http://instagram.com/askamatchmaker