The I'm Still Here Foundation Marks Nearly 30 Years of Proving People Can Live WellWith Dementia

Susan Law- Former Executive Director of the I'm Still Here Foundation and Norman's wife

Lexington, MA—May 20, 2026—After being diagnosed with dementia, Norman Law

stopped painting. A Rhode Island School of Design graduate, Norman had been an avid

painter and designer his entire life, with his work displayed in art shows and museums.

"It was his passion, but I worried he would never paint again,” said his wife Susan.

However, their concerns proved unfounded when they were introduced to the “I’m Still

Here” philosophy, a dementia care model developed by Dr. John Zeisel that seeks to

engage the full person rather than focus on cognitive decline.

“It gave him a purpose,” said Susan. “They empowered him to use the skill sets he still

had, and he became a teacher to others.”

Norman thrived in the I’m Still Here engagement continuum, beginning at the Learning

for Life Center in 2012 before transitioning to residential care in 2013. While living there,

he taught painting classes, led tours of the residence, enjoyed walking through the

gardens, and Susan visited often.

“It was phenomenal,” she said. “I truly believe he would not have had eight good

years—really 10 good years at the end of his life—without the support and the

philosophy that enabled him to live his full life in a happy way.”

According to Susan, the ISHF approach stood out among the various supports she

researched after Norman’s diagnosis. “I was really upset that there were so few

organizations that really knew how to engage people,” she noted. “I looked long and

hard at the different options, and most of them treated dementia as something to be

medicated or therapized.”

That approach, she said, “never would have worked” for her husband. “He needed a

purpose, and he found that through the ‘I’m Still Here’ philosophy,” she explained.

This philosophy serves as the evidence base for the I’m Still Here Foundation (ISHF), a

nonprofit Dr. Zeisel founded in 1995 that works to ensure Norman’s experience is not

the exception but the standard. Through its "Inspiration Guidebooks" and a robust grant-

making program, ISHF provides evidence-based, non-pharmacologic interventions to

cultural institutions and care communities nationwide.

ISHF works in close partnership with Hopeful Aging LLC, a National Institute of Health-

funded organization and leader in the non-pharmacologic dementia research field, also

founded by Dr. Zeisel.

Its partnerships and mission is very familiar to Susan, as Dr. Zeisel invited her to join

the ISHF board in 2017—an invitation she accepted. Eventually serving as the

organization & Executive Director from 2023 to 2025, she recently returned to the board.

“It was wonderful to lead an organization that had done so much for my husband and

my family,” she said. “I wanted to pay it forward"

Momentum continues to build around this work, with ISHF receiving more than 200

grant applications from 44 states in the past year alone—reflecting what the

Foundation’s team sees as a hopeful shift in how our country understands and

approaches dementia.

"When we started this work nearly 30 years ago, the non-pharmacologic methodology

that we were developing was not widely accepted" said Sharon Johnson, ISHF

Executive Director. "Today, we have proven that these types of interventions are as

effective as medication for treating many of the symptoms associated with dementia,

and communities across the country are responding.”

That response, she said, strongly indicates that families, caregivers, and care

institutions are ready for a different conversation, grounded in dignity, connection, and

the belief that people living with dementia still have much to give.

Susan agreed and said she wants to spread hope through ISHF to families who have

received a dementia diagnosis. "There are resources,” she noted. “Norman was there

for me through his death, and his memory lives on in me, our children, and in our

thoughts.”

These memories are often revisited by her family on weekly Sunday Zoom calls—an

experience she believes underscores the continued importance and relevance of ISHF’s

mission.

“Not a Sunday has gone by that we don’t talk about Norman,” she said. “He won’t

disappear.”

Founded in 1995, ISHF is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit foundation that helps communities

implement research-informed, non-pharmacologic engagement programs so that people

living with dementia can experience connection, dignity, and hope. Learn more at

imstillhere.org.