DCPutnam Consulting

I'm excited that I have a contract with the Pittsburgh Theological Seminary to do 4-hours of dementia training for clergy and church leaders in January. This is the first of a broader three-pronged education program that will take place in 2025 for clergy & parishioners.

This is the latest class of new Certified Dementia Practitioners that I trained this week. It was a great 8-hour day of sharing, learning and preparing these wonderful professionals to go back to their memory care communities & health care agencies to train others and improve dementia care for patients and families. Thank you one and all for your interest & commitment to improving dementia care. ♥️

DCPutnam Consulting Doreen has worked 30+ years in the dementia field & has national & international certification.

Art by Anita Kunz Art
www.instagram.com/anitakunz

We are so excited that Brushes & Beans Cafe has reopened! A handful of us showed our support on their opening day and did a little networking!

I'm thrilled to announce that the generous family foundation that has allowed me to distribute over 2000 complimentary books to family & professional caregivers across the country has just approved a second grant.
This second grant will allow me to distribute @ 700 books to neurologists, primary care physicians and geriatricians in the greater Pittsburgh area.
I am more than grateful for the opportunity to be able to share my book with the medical community that needs to be aware of this wonderful resource for dementia families.
I am so deeply thankful to the family for their generosity, kindness and faith in my goal to educate as many people as possible about Alzheimer's disease & the related dementias.♥️

DCPutnam Consulting Doreen has worked 30+ years in the dementia field & has national & international certification.

Civil rights icon Ruby Bridges turned 70 this week and this Mighty Girl from Arkansas paid homage to her hero during her school's book character parade!

This amazing photo dates back a few years ago when then 6-year-old Jodie Thornton dressed up as Bridges, who as a 6-year-old herself famously became the first Black child to desegregate an all-White elementary school in the South. When the then 1st grader walked to William Frantz Elementary School in New Orleans on November 14, 1960, she was surrounded by a team of U.S. Marshals for her protection from an angry mob. To further evoke that historic moment, Jodie posed for this picture with her father JR Thornton, who happens to be a U.S. Marshal.

Jodie’s mom, Brandy Coates Thornton, says that when she and her daughter went through Jodie's books together to decide on a costume for the character parade, Jodie was so moved by Ruby Bridges' story that she choose to dress in her likeness. Thornton says she exclaimed: “Mama, I really do look like Ruby Bridges. I wish she had someone like you to walk her to school." It wasn't until she shared Jodie's picture on Facebook, however, that Thornton says she realized its impact, especially on people who lived through that period: "You just never know how an act so simple can mean so much to so many people on so many levels. I just never imagined that this would touch so many people... we’re not forgetting our history.”

If you'd like to share Ruby Bridge’s inspiring story with children, we highly recommend the picture book "The Story Of Ruby Bridges" for ages 4 to 8 (https://www.amightygirl.com/the-story-of-ruby-bridges), the chapter book "She Persisted: Ruby Bridges" for ages 6 to 9 (https://www.amightygirl.com/she-persisted-ruby-bridges), and the memoir that Ruby Bridges wrote for ages 8 to 12 entitled "Through My Eyes" (https://www.amightygirl.com/through-my-eyes).

Ruby Bridges is the author of the picture book "I Am Ruby Bridges" for ages 4 to 8 (https://www.amightygirl.com/i-am-ruby-bridges) and a book connecting today's activism with her own childhood experiences for ages 10 and up "This Is Your Time" for ages 10 and up (https://www.amightygirl.com/this-is-your-time)

For books for all ages about more courageous girls and women of the U.S. Civil Rights Movement for children and teens, check out our blog post on "50 Inspiring Books on Girls & Women of the Civil Rights Movement" at https://www.amightygirl.com/blog?p=11177

For our favorite t-shirt celebrating fierce Mighty Girls like Ruby Bridges, check out the "Though She Be But Little She Is Fierce" t-shirt -- available in a variety of styles and colors for all ages at https://www.amightygirl.com/fierce-t-shirt

https://triblive.com/local/westmoreland/murrysville-woman-writes-a-book-about-grandmothers-with-alzheimers/

Murrysville woman writes a book about grandmothers with Alzheimer's In her professional career, Doreen Coulson Putnam noticed when grandchildren were separated from their grandparents who had Alzheimer’s and dementia. A certified dementia practitioner, Putnam sought to create an educational resource for families to help them understand memory loss and how to i...

September is World Alzheimer's Month!

A global campaign to combat stigma and raise awareness - so that everyone knows the signs and symptoms of dementia, and how to get support when they need it. The theme this year is time to act on dementia.

This month, you can help ensure that people affected by dementia know about the support and services that are available to them.

It's really easy to get involved, you could:
📱Share our social media posts
🗓️ Attend a dementia friendly event on the Pennsylvania calendar at www.dementiafriendlypa.org
💙Encourage others to become Dementia Friends: www.dementiafriendspa.org

Looking forward to this event. If you have children in your family who have a loved one with some type of dementia... Stop by & pick up a FREE copy of my book.

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Word Association Press

Meet Doreen Coulson Putnam, author of SOMETIMES GRANDMAMA DOESN'T KNOW ME, at A Gathering of Authors, September 12th, Peoples Library, 6:30 PM.
A one-of-a-kind book for children, this story tells the tale of two little girls who both have grandmothers with Alzheimer's disease. Doreen is a certified expert in the field, and has 25+ years of experience in the Alzheimer's Association. Beautifully illustrated, and full of heart, this book is a gem for your young reader's library.

Yesterday at the Dementia Friendly Lancaster conference, I spoke on a panel about Vascular Dementia & presented a seminar on the same topic.There were 100+ participants who learned critical information about Vascular Dementia, Alzheimer's Disease, Frontotemporal Degeneration (FTD) and Lewey Body Dementia (LBD).

AND I was able to give away 167 of my books SOMETIMES GRANDMAMA DOESN'T KNOW ME! to many family & professional caregivers thanks to the grant I received.
A very successful 2 days with Teepa Snow and multiple dementia experts. Thank you to Dementia Friendly Lancaster and their fantastic volunteers for all the hard work they did to make this a successful conference! ♥️

A GREAT day today in Lancaster, PA with Dementia Friendly Lancaster. Teepa Snow presented an all day conference on dementia. She did a fantastic job, as she always does. Marla Turnbull, my mentee, shared the day with the 500 people who benefited from Teepa's words of wisdom. Lori (right) attended a 90 minute training I did for Dementia Friendly PA (PGH) and stopped by to introduce herself. Great day!!!
AND distributed 140 of my books today! WooHoo!!!!

I will be part of a panel discussion on Friday and also presenting an educational program on Alzheimer's disease and Vascular dementia. Both days will be very informative!

A few dementia statistics from the Alzheimer's Association's 2024 Facts and Figures to help people realize the seriousness & urgency with this issue.

* 6.9 million diagnosed with
Alzheimer's in the USA
* 1:9 people over 65 have Alz.
* Pennsylvania... 282,000
* Rhode Island... 22,000
* Florida... 579,000
* New York... 426,000

I personally have 6 close friends who have some form of dementia. It's heart breaking!!!

What can you do as an individual?
* Support dementia families
* Eat healthy, exercise your body &
brain
* See your doctor EARLY if you think
you may have a problem
* Don't hide your need for help
* Educate yourself
* Financially support the local or
national Alzheimer's Association

Be aware that Alzheimer's is only ONE form of dementia. There are many more!

I am fighting to end Alzheimer's and you can too!

I still get excited when I receive requests from health related organizations for my book. Recently I have distributed 30 books to AHN (Allegheny Health Network) for their PGH summer caregivers conference; 20 books for an Alzheimer's Association fundraiser walk; 15 to professionals training to be Certified Dementia Practitioners and 19 to the Alzheimer's Association African American Summit. This week I received a call from Columbus, Georgia from their Area Agency on Aging. 20 more books in the mail to them yesterday!
My book is having a significant, positive impact on family caregivers and their children as well as professionals. I couldn't be more proud! Onward & Upward!!!!

Expert interview: FDA approves new Alzheimer's treatment Dr. Margarita Reyes of Bristol Health and member of Alzheimer's Association's Medical Scientific Advisory Council explains what Donanemab can do.