Dementia Friendly Cedar Valley

08/13/2025

07/23/2025

Our Dementia Friendly Cedar Valley team was grateful to donate dementia-related books across the community! We seek to spread dementia education in a variety of ways. You can find them throughout Little Free Libraries as well as the public libraries.

Looking for solid book recommendations? Here are some of the highlights of the children's and adult books distributed:
📙"Ice Cream with Grandpa: A Loving Story for Kids About Alzheimer's & Dementia" by Laura Smetana
📙"My Book About Brains, Change and Dementia: What Is Dementia and What Does It Do?" by Lynda Moore
📙"My Grandma has Dementia" by Alex Winstanley
📙"Grandpa and Lucy" by Edie Weinstein
📙"Creating Moments of Joy Along the Alzheimer's Journey: A Guide for Families and Caregivers" by Jolene Brackey
📙"The 36-Hour Day: A Family Guide to Caring for People Who Have Alzheimer Disease and Other Dementias" by Nancy L. Mace

07/21/2025

Another Dementia Friendly Organization in the Cedar Valley! 🥳

Congratulations to Kimball Avenue United Methodist Church for hosting training and becoming recognized as a Dementia Friendly Organization! Faith-based communities play an important role in dementia friendly communities.

07/15/2025

We are thankful to be one of the programs benefiting from the advocacy and generosity of the Dill Family! What an inspiration!

Kevin Dill has built a life around serving others – and a Lewy Body Dementia diagnosis in 2019 has not changed that. At the time of his diagnosis, Kevin was serving as Director of Black Hawk County Veterans Affairs, a role he cared deeply about. After stepping away from that position, Kevin and his wife Tammy looked for new ways to continue making a difference.

In 2022, they created the Kevin Dill Family Fund at the Waterloo Community Foundation to support causes close to their hearts, including veterans, people living with dementia or Parkinson’s, and their caregivers.

Since then, the fund has granted more than $117,000 to local nonprofits making an impact in these areas.

Learn more about this fund or how to support it by going to the Waterloo Community Foundation's website at. https://wloocf.fcsuite.com/erp/donate/create/fund?funit_id=1759

07/14/2025

We had so much fun at the Dementia Friendly Spa event at Trio Salonspa & Boutique last week! It was open for people living with dementia and their caregivers to get a haircut, pedicure, or facial on us. Our goal was to uplift attendees and provide connection to valuable resources and supports across the Cedar Valley. Finally, we got to highlight one of our trained Dementia Friendly Businesses! The staff at Trio Salonspa did an incredible job being dementia friendly - from moving black mats off the floor to turning down music and phones, we are thankful for their thoughtful service. Thank you to all who had a hand in this event, especially our volunteers and attendees!

07/14/2025

07/10/2025

06/30/2025

We have an updated list for dementia-related social groups in Black Hawk County! Learn more or download it here: https://dementiafriendlyiowa.org/communities/dementia-friendly-cedar-valley/