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Sofie Mathiassen Awarded 2019 Bob & Diane Fund Grant Share This on LinkedIn   Tweet This   Forward This

18 November 2019

The Bob & Diane Fund has announced Danish photographer Sofie Mathiassen has been awarded its $5,000 grant for 2019 for her project But Greatest is Love. With 58 submissions from 22 countries the contest was judged by a jury of two photojournalism professionals, both of who expressed unanimous high praise for the Mathiassen's work.

"Photographing your family takes a certain risk and vulnerability," said Chip Somodevilla, senior photographer, Getty Images News. "And Sofie has shared her world with us in an intimate and beautiful way. Denmark may have sophisticated welfare/health system -- but Alzheimer's still has the same impact."

Christina Piaia, founder of the Chris Hondros Fund added, "Sofie's project is a sentimental and intimate glance from a caretaker and person living with Alzheimer's. She shares to the world her story of a lovely an inter-generational connection."

Alzheimer's and dementia-related diseases affect more than 50 million people worldwide. Mathiassen's home country of Denmark has more than 35,000 people living with the disease and aims to become a dementia-friendly nation by 2025.

Mathiassen's project was taken over the last four years of her grandfather's Poul's life -- showing the progress of Poul's Dementia and Parkinson's and how her grandmother Else dealt with slowly losing her partner.

She plans to use the grant to help publish a book on the project.

"The project is about my grandparents, whose story is only one example of how dementia can impact a relationship," she said. "The book intends to show a family portrait through sickness and health, to remind us how we must take care of each other and be less afraid of life's difficulties, as it is an inevitable part of life, just like love is."

"The visual stories of patients and caregivers can humanize what is, in fact, a very cruel and dehumanizing disease," says Gina. "My hope is that the work funded today and in the future will have a profound and lasting effect on people, persuading them to support and advocate for a cure."

Sofie's work, But Greatest is Love, which we've included above, will be presented in the Washington Post and featured on the Bob & Diane Fund Web site.

Danish Photographer Wins Photography Grant for Alzheimer's Project

Making the Fight Against Alzheimer's Disease A Focal Point: Visual Storytelling Grant to Promote Awareness of the Global Epidemic for Fourth Year in a Row

WASHINGTON, D.C. -- The Bob & Diane Fund, a grant-making organization dedicated to promoting awareness of Alzheimer's and dementia-related diseases, is awarding $5,000 to Denmark photographer Sofie Mathiassen for her project But Greatest is Love.

Alzheimer's and dementia-related diseases affects more than fifty million people worldwide. Mathiassen's home country of Denmark has more than 35,000 people living with the disease and aims to become a dementia-friendly nation by 2025.

Today's announcement attempts to bring awareness, interest and support for funding research efforts by awarding a photographer whose work tells the stories of patients with dignity and respect.

The Bob & Diane Fund, which launched in June 2016, is the passion project of Gina Martin, whose mother, Diane, succumbed to Alzheimer's after a five-year battle. Diane's high school sweetheart and husband for almost 50 years, Bob, was her primary caregiver and died just 3 months later. Their legacy of generosity and compassion for others was what inspired Gina to create the Fund in their names.

"The visual stories of patients and caregivers can humanize what is, in fact, a very cruel and dehumanizing disease," says Gina. "My hope is that the work funded today and in the future will have a profound and lasting effect on people, persuading them to support and advocate for a cure."

Sofie's work, But Greatest is Love, will be presented in the Washington Post and featured on http://www.bobanddianefund.org.

With 58 submissions from 22 countries the contest was judged by a jury of two esteemed photojournalism professionals, both of who expressed unanimous high praise for the awardee's work.

"Photographing your family takes a certain risk and vulnerability.[!]And Sofie has shared her world with us in an intimate and beautiful way.[!]Denmark may have sophisticated welfare/health system -- but Alzheimer's still has the same impact," says Chip Somodevilla, Senior Photographer, Getty Images News.

Christina Piaia, Founder of the Chris Hondros Fund, "Sofie's project is a sentimental and intimate glance from a caretaker and person living with Alzheimer's. She shares to the world her story of a lovely an inter-generational connection."


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