Our Story

Dementia Friendly Fort Worth began with a simple but powerful belief: people living with dementia deserve to remain valued, supported, connected, and included in the communities they call home.

Our story began at First United Methodist Church of Fort Worth, where Linda Abel, a retired nurse and the founding president of Dementia Friendly Fort Worth, was searching for a meaningful way to serve her faith community and the greater Fort Worth community. Drawing on her experience working with older adults in assisted living, Linda recognized a significant need for greater understanding of dementia and better education for those caring for people living with cognitive change.

In May 2017, that vision took shape through a year-long dementia education series at First United Methodist Church. The program brought together professionals, care partners, and community members to learn more about dementia and explore better, more person-centered approaches to care.

In January 2018, Dementia Friendly Fort Worth (DFFW) was formally established, making Fort Worth the first community in Texas to pursue recognition through the Dementia Friendly America initiative.

From the beginning, the vision extended beyond any one organization or profession. Dementia touches every part of a community—families, healthcare, businesses, faith communities, first responders, local government, financial and legal services, and neighbors. Creating meaningful change would require bringing those sectors together.

Linda championed that vision and served as President of Dementia Friendly Fort Worth until May 2023. Her leadership helped establish relationships with healthcare systems, universities, community organizations, and other partners while advocating for better dementia education and more compassionate, person-centered care.

Education of future healthcare professionals became an important part of this early work. Partnerships with local universities and healthcare organizations created opportunities for nursing, medical, and other healthcare students to move beyond textbooks and better understand the lived experience of dementia. Those relationships continue today and remain an important part of DFFW’s commitment to changing how people living with dementia are understood, cared for, and supported.

What began primarily as an education initiative has evolved into a community-based organization providing Connection, Activities, Resources, and Education—our CARE framework—for people living with dementia, care partners, professionals, businesses, first responders, faith communities, and the broader community.

Today, DFFW provides social and engagement programs for people living with dementia, support and connection for care partners, community education, dementia training for first responders and healthcare professionals, Dementia Friendly Business Certification, resource navigation, and opportunities for organizations and individuals to become active participants in creating a more dementia-friendly community.

Our work extends beyond simply teaching people about dementia. We are helping change how our community sees, understands, responds to, and includes people living with dementia.

As our population ages and more families are impacted by dementia, DFFW is increasingly becoming a trusted local connection point for individuals and families searching for education, support, meaningful engagement, and help navigating available resources.

At the same time, our partnerships and reach continue to expand. We are bringing dementia education into businesses, faith communities, healthcare settings, universities, community organizations, and first responder agencies while creating programs where people living with dementia and their care partners can continue to experience purpose, friendship, belonging, and joy.

And we are not finished.

Dementia Friendly Fort Worth is working toward a future in which dementia awareness is woven into the fabric of our community—where a person experiencing cognitive change can enter a business, attend church, interact with a first responder, visit a healthcare provider, participate in an activity, or simply remain connected to the community with dignity and understanding.

Our vision remains as meaningful today as it was when this work began: a community that honors, values, supports, and includes people living with dementia.

We invite you to be part of building it.