'I couldn't remember the station name — now I work as a barista': A dementia patient's story

Seoul Metropolitan Government to hold 'Memory Together Expo' at Jonggak Station's Garden of the Sun on Thursday and Friday

People with mild cognitive impairment and early-stage dementia to participate; job-matching 'Employment Bank' to offer work placement

District-level social participation programs, including a memory bookstore and a memory goods shop, also on display

The Chorok Memory Cafe in Seongbuk-gu, Seoul, operated by the Seoul Metropolitan Government for people living with dementia. [Provided by Seoul Metropolitan Government]

"Have a happy day!" The voice of Lee Jeong-sun, 80, was bright and full of energy at the end of a phone interview Wednesday. Lee is a barista who serves coffee and tea to visitors twice a week. "If you live joyfully, illness turns around and runs away. There is no moment as happy as right now," she said.

Lee was diagnosed with dementia six years ago and now works as a barista at the dementia care center in Guro-gu, Seoul. "I couldn't remember the name of the station I needed to get home. I stood outside for an hour trying to recall my address. I think that was when it started. There were times I soiled myself in my room," she said, recalling what she described as "days when the sky felt like it was collapsing" and "days I sat on the floor and wept." Lee did not give up after her diagnosis. She sought out a dementia care center and looked for a way forward, determined to keep learning and to keep smiling. Now, as someone who has lived through dementia firsthand, she helps other elderly people in similar situations at a branch of the Oryu-dong Dementia Care Center in Guro-gu. Her efforts have been recognized: she received the Seoul Mayor's Award at last year's Dementia Together ceremony and the Ministry of Health and Welfare minister's award in August this year.

A special event is being organized to let people living with dementia or mild cognitive impairment share their own messages directly. The Seoul Metropolitan Government will hold the "Memory Together Expo" at the Garden of the Sun at Jonggak Station on Thursday and Friday, marking the 19th National Dementia Awareness Day, observed every year on Sept. 21. Lee will also attend the expo and share her experience.

About 40 people with mild cognitive impairment or early-stage dementia will serve as "day staff," taking on roles such as barista and event guide. The event is hosted by the Seoul Metropolitan Government and organized by the Seoul Metropolitan Dementia Center and the dementia care centers of all 25 autonomous districts. The expo's core message is that there are still things people with dementia can do. Those with early-stage dementia or mild cognitive impairment are capable of managing daily life and still want to continue participating in society by drawing on their own experiences and strengths.

Elderly participants taking part in a horticultural activity at the Chorok Memory Cafe in Seongbuk-gu, Seoul, operated by the Seoul Metropolitan Government. [Provided by Seoul Metropolitan Government]

At the expo, participants will take on a range of roles: serving as baristas at the "Memory Cafe" to prepare drinks and greet visitors, organizing books and assisting as library aides at the "Dementia Library," and carrying out other tasks including dementia awareness counseling, decorating flowerpots, fall-prevention exercises and games, and promoting and helping install the "BrainFit45" mobile application.

The expo will also run an "Employment Bank" on Thursday, dedicated to exploring concrete job and social participation opportunities for people with mild cognitive impairment. Companies and institutions will work together to identify roles that people with mild cognitive impairment can perform and to explore the potential of socially inclusive employment.

A range of district-level programs will also be on display. The "Memory Bookstore" in Seongbuk-gu brings together people with mild cognitive impairment or dementia and their families to create and publish books and bookmarks using writing and illustration. The "Memory General Store" in Seongdong-gu has dementia patients' families and people with mild cognitive impairment or early-onset dementia make and package memory-themed goods and take part in events.

On Friday, the expo's final day, a talk concert titled "Sparkling Even When You Forget" will be held with author Jo Gi-hyeon, who is also a caregiver for a family member with early-onset dementia.

The number of dementia patients is rising alongside the growing elderly population. According to the "Dementia Status in Korea" report published in July by the Central Dementia Center, the number of dementia patients has been increasing — from 147,040 in 2022 to 147,948 in 2023 and 150,712 in 2024. Over the same period, the share of "early-onset dementia patients" — those under 65 — among all dementia patients in Seoul declined from 9.3 percent to 7.8 percent to 6.7 percent, but remains higher than the national average, which fell from 7.7 percent to 6.7 percent to 6.0 percent. Early-onset dementia refers to dementia in people under 65; because symptoms emerge during a period of active social engagement, those affected tend to experience a particularly strong sense of despair.

In response, the Seoul Metropolitan Government operates four Chorok Memory Cafes for early-onset dementia patients — in Gangseo-gu (opened in 2023), Dobong-gu and Yangcheon-gu (each in 2025), and Seongbuk-gu (2026). The cafes run horticultural programs including smart-farm crop cultivation, hydroponic growing education and plot pre-sales, as well as social participation programs covering serving, beverage preparation and taking orders via kiosk. A total of 668 early-onset dementia patients visited and took part in programs at the three cafes that operated through last year. Choi In-ok, 65, a barista at the Chorok Memory Cafe in Gangseo-gu, offered this advice: "If you put in the effort and wait, treatment will come through. There is no need to worry too much. Rather than being alone, it is better to connect with people."

At last year's National Dementia Awareness Day event, the Seoul Metropolitan Government also held a session in which people living with dementia or mild cognitive impairment read empathy speeches. A man surnamed Kim from Gangbuk-gu, who was diagnosed with vascular dementia in 2019, shared his experience of consistently participating in education and campaigns to raise public awareness of dementia and volunteering as an advocate. A woman surnamed Choi from Gwanak-gu said she had initially withdrawn and been reluctant to engage in social activities, but regained her confidence after joining a cognitive enhancement class at a dementia care center.

Jo Yeong-chang, director of the Seoul Metropolitan Government's Public Health Bureau, said he hoped the expo would "serve as an opportunity for participants to connect with society by drawing on their own experiences and capabilities, and as a meaningful occasion for citizens to feel firsthand that people with dementia can still work and live alongside us."

cook@heraldcorp.com