Martha’s Vineyard will receive formal recognition as a dementia-friendly community during a ceremony on Thursday, Dec. 15. The event will take place at 3 p.m. at Martha’s Vineyard Center for Living in Vineyard Haven. Representatives from Massachusetts Councils on Aging (MCOA) and AARP, the internationally recognized organization behind the age-friendly community movement, will visit the Vineyard to support the honor.

The Vineyard is now one of more than 120 Massachusetts communities that have signed the Dementia Friendly Community Pledge. Communities with that designation provide services, programs and public spaces to support people with dementia and their care partners.

Healthy Aging Martha’s Vineyard launched the effort to gain recognition and certification for the Island as an age-friendly community. This year, the organization partnered with Martha’s Vineyard Center for Living to include dementia awareness and advocacy initiatives in its five-year, age-friendly community plan.

More information about dementia support and advocacy at MV Center for Living can be found at mvcenter4living.org.

Anyone wishing to attend the recognition event should RSVP to Leslie Clapp at lesliec@mvcenter4living.org or 508-693-9440.