I'm Still Here Foundation Selects Seven Organizations for Its 2026–2027 Innovation Grant Cycle

Mystic Valley Elder Services based out of Massachusetts. 

Lexington, MA—July 21, 2026—The I'm Still Here Foundation (ISHF) has selected six organizations to receive Innovation Grants for the 2026–2027 cycle, chosen from a competitive national pool of over 200 applicants representing 44 states and the District of Columbia. Founded in 1995 by Dr. John Zeisel, ISHF is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit that supports communities and organizations in implementing research-informed, non-pharmacologic engagement programs that enable people living with dementia to experience connection, dignity, and hope.

This year's recipients reflect the many forms meaningful engagement can take. They include: All Aboard! Outdoors! from Sandpoint Friendship Station (Idaho), Campus Connections (Ohio), Expressing Memories from Cuyahoga County Public Library (Ohio), Mystic Valley Elder Services (Massachusetts), Neighborhood Hunt (Texas), Our Town from Juliette Fowler Communities (Texas), and Raíces en Movimiento from Corazón Latino (Washington, DC).

Across these programs, people living with dementia and their care partners will make music and move together, record their life stories, turn neighborhood walks into shared adventures, reconnect with the roles that defined their working lives, set sail on open waters, and become a welcome part of campus life.

“Our message of 'Hope in Action' is central to everything we do,” said Sharon Johnson, ISHF Executive Director. “These grantees are proof that people living with dementia can continue to experience purpose, connection, growth, and joy throughout their dementia journey.”

In addition to its Innovation Grants program, ISHF works in close partnership with Hopeful Aging LLC, a National Institutes of Health-funded leader in non-pharmacologic dementia research, also founded by Dr. Zeisel. To learn more about ISHF-funded programs, visit imstillhere.org.