On Friday, November 21, 2025, listeners of Radio KFAI 90.3FM’s popular program The Conversation with Al McFarlane heard a moving discussion about memory loss, caregiving and a new state-funded effort aimed at the Twin Cities’ African-descent communities. “This grant comes at a critical time for our community,” said Dr. Lolita King-Bethel, assistant clinic director of the African American Child Wellness Institute, as she described a two-year campaign funded by the Minnesota Board on Aging to boost awareness, screening and culturally specific supports.
Dr. King-Bethel framed the work with clarity and urgency as she started quickly addressing misconceptions around Dementia. “Dementia is the broader umbrella and Alzheimer’s falls under that,” she told host Al McFarlane and guest Dr. Oliver Williams, carefully differentiating terms many listeners use interchangeably. “Alzheimer’s often impacts the hippocampus, the part of the brain that stores memory. With Alzheimer’s you see short-term memory problems, and sometimes long-term memory problems too.” Her informative explanations around moved the show from abstract anxiety into concrete, clinical terms that people could understand.
The project, which is funded at roughly $150,000 and is listed among Minnesota Board on Aging awards this fall, will combine media outreach, church-based screenings and follow-up referral pathways. “We are going to be increasing the awareness of dementia and its impact on the Black community,” Dr. King-Bethel said. “This campaign will be for the next two years to increase awareness through media, through partnership with other avenues so that we can do one-on-one screenings and assessments that are culturally relevant and specific.”
Listeners of McFarlane’s popular educational segment got both practical and surprising details as Dr King-Bethel also said that the institute will bring a five-minute, picture-based screening called” Five-Cog” into churches and mosques. “We have 11 churches committed to allowing us to come in and provide a really short screening to assess whether or not a person should be referred on for further testing,” Dr. King-Bethel said. The screening is intentionally designed to avoid language bias and to work for elders who are not fluent in English, including African immigrant communities. “This is a culturally based assessment tool,” she said. “It did very well in populations of color, particularly Black populations.” The conversation balanced clinical explanation with warm, community-centered outreach. Dr. King-Bethel described an initiative she jokingly calls “a wing and a prayer”, she with a light laugh explained what this concept meant, while also underscoring its human touch. “We are replicating that with our dementia awareness campaign to offer a mini presentation and then they get to go home with their chicken wings.”
The show host Al McFarlane and Dr. Williams added personal testimonies that grounded the public-health message in lived experience. McFarlane described early, uneasy memories of an aunt who ended up “locked away” because family members did not understand what was happening. “They put her in a rocking chair, and she just rocked back and forth, and somehow I got a memory of her rocking herself out of the chair, falling forward on the floor, throwing up and dying,” he said, with his voice low from that memory of his aunt, while Dr. Williams described his own family history of stroke-related dementia and the shock of “losing my father that I had before.”
As the guests conversed, the show moved through risk, prevention and caregiving. Dr. King-Bethel emphasized that risk factors like high blood pressure, diabetes and substance misuse are interconnected with stroke and vascular dementia. “If we know something runs in the family, younger generations can get ahead of that with improved diet, exercise and by staying away from excessive alcohol use,” she advised. She urged listeners to take practical steps such as going to annual checkups with local health service providers, adhering to taking one’s medicine where one has been prescribed medication and documenting concerns for primary care visits. “Write it down. Be as specific as you can,” she said, referencing the reality that brief medical visits often miss nuance and that writing down these concerns does help provide that nuance. Caregivers, she also added, often bear enormous emotional burdens. “Sometimes they (caregivers) think the person is just being difficult, but it’s the brain,” she said. “Caregivers need support and guidance. We will be doing hands-on support at AACWI and compiling a resource book with culturally specific caregivers and services in Minneapolis.”
The radio segment concluded with a clear call to action. “Go to the African American Child Wellness Institute website, get more information and find out if you are ready for an assessment,” McFarlane urged listeners. Dr. King-Bethel promised partnerships with medical providers, memory-care facilities and local organizations to ensure screening leads to care. The board-funded initiative is explicit about one goal: preserve dignity and memory while building community knowledge and support. The interview, which was posted as an episode of The Conversation, underscores how targeted, culturally informed outreach can bridge stigma, clinical care and everyday compassion. “We owe it to our elders to do better,” Dr. King-Bethel said. “Preserve memory, preserve legacy, ensure our elders receive the care and dignity they deserve.”
