Stacy Monson
Open Circle
A stand-alone novel
Mindy Lee "Minnie" Carlson's dream job has dropped into her hands, but there's a catch. She has four months to revive Open Circle, the town's only Senior Adult Day Center, or the doors will close, leaving her beloved seniors stranded and eliminating the only job she's ever wanted. Globe-trotting photographer Jackson Young documents the forgotten people of the world, especially the poor and elderly. After decades on the road, he's stunned to discover his beloved Grandma Em is still alive in the small town he'd had to leave as a child. Overjoyed, Jackson sweeps back into town to reconnect with her, only to find she's been Minnie's adopted grandma for the past twenty years. When Em has a stroke, his ideas about her care pit him against Minnie's determination to help her regain her health and independence. For Grandma Em's sake, and the future of Open Circle, they'll need to do the impossible - find a way to work together.
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Behind the Story
After walking with both my mother and mother-in-law through their Alzheimer's journeys (they passed within 15 months of each other), I had learned far more about that particular form of dementia than I'd wanted to, honestly. My husband and I attended several Purple Gala fundraisers to benefit Alzheimer's research and participated in several Walk to End Alzheimer's events. I co-led a support group for caregivers of dementia spouses. And I released "Open Circle" for the first time as part of the Alzheimer's Association's Longest Day event.
The idea for Open Circle came from an actual adult day program in Minnesota of the same name. Watching the staff utilize a process called person-centered care changed my thinking about "adult daycare." These weren't just old people sitting in a sterile room for six hours a day so their caregiver could rest and run errands. With a highly interactive staff, the clients were given personalized care within a group setting. From the music to the food, to activities and personal care, each day was tailored not only to meet the needs of the individuals, but also to encourage them, keep them interacting and busy with meaningful activity, and most of all treat them with the dignity and respect they deserved.
In 2019, Mike was diagnosed with FTD (frontotemporal degeneration) and we were plunged back into the world of dementia on an even more personal level. I rereleased Open Circle during those caregiving years to once again raise awareness of the various types of dementia and to offer resources and encouragement to those caring for a loved one in the throes of this horrid disease. Sadly, not every adult day program is run like Open Circle, but my prayer is that the concept of person-centered care will continue to be utilized as much as possible.
What Readers Are Saying
"Open Circle by Stacy Monson is a marvelous and heartfelt contemporary Christian novel that surrounds the topics of dementia and Alzheimer's. Far from being a gloomy read, Open Circle is uplifting, caring and full of love. The characters are elderly but not unseen. They still have a part to play in life and are encouraged to live life, to be active and not passive."
"Another winner from Stacy Monson! As usual, Stacy gives the reader a story different from what is typically found in the Christian fiction market. Set at Open Circle, a senior adult day center, this story shines the spotlight on the amazing caregivers who tenderly love on our senior citizens and those suffering from dementia and Alzheimer's."
"Such wonderful feisty characters! With a surrogate grandma of my own in childhood, I could easily understand Minnie's insecurity when her beloved Grandma Em's real grandson shows up after twenty years absence. The setting of a senior activity center is delightfully different, and I was thrilled to know that such daycare places actually exist."