Originally Dementia-Friendly Communities of Northern Colorado®, Dementia Together started as a volunteer initiative under the umbrella of Partnership for Age Friendly Communities. We offered one care partner support group and one memory cafe at Timberline Church in Fort Collins, CO. In November 2015, we embarked on a dementia-friendly community initiative as a result of the incredible community support we received with the B Sharp Arts Engagement® program, a collaborative project enabling couples living with dementia to attend the symphony and participate in a research study. When the need for sustaining the volunteer initiative became apparent, we formed a 501c3 non-profit organization in January 2017. Dementia Together remains a Northern Colorado focused “in the meantime” nonprofit organization today. Due to our online programming and word of mouth, our reach is expanding throughout the United States and beyond.  We are supported by private donations, corporate partnerships, grants, and a lot of collaboration and passion.

We enthusiastically share the SPECAL® method as a framework to effectively and positively manage the condition of dementia to produce lifelong well-being.  We collaborate with many Northern Colorado organizations as well as several national and international organizations which include The Contented Dementia Trust, Dementia Action Alliance (DAA), Dementia Map, Alzheimer’s Speaks, and Purple Angel Ambassadors. We were cited in the 2019 DAA white paper case study which stated: “one nonprofit organization, [Dementia Together], is leading the way in changing the predominant culture surrounding people living with dementia and their potential to ‘live well.’” We contributed to the DAA comprehensive manual in 2022, Pathways to Well-Being with Dementia. More importantly, we create and share joy with our friends who are striving to live well with dementia.