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Creating a livable Larimer County | |
February 2026
Thanks and gratitude to our Mission and Newsletter Sponsor
| | The Gallery at Fort Collins is our Mission Sponsor and our Newsletter Sponsor. The Gallery is deeply committed to fostering a thriving and connected community for older adults - just like we are. | | | |
Meet our Mission Sponsor
Deedra Moats is The Gallery's Executive Director. While preparing for the mid-March move-ins, she took time to give PAFC's Interim Director Cheryl Noble a tour of the beautiful new senior community. The Gallery is optimally located at the corner of Stanford and Horsetooth, and offers 144 well-appointed apartments for independent and assisted living as well as memory care.
The Gallery lives up to its name with artistic detailing throughout from accent pieces to interior design elements. There will be four restaurants, each offering different dining experiences. Other next-level amenities include a full-service bar plus a rooftop deck and lounge with stunning views. There's so much to take in and appreciate at The Gallery, and we are deeply grateful that they support our work!
Feel free to reach out to Deedra if you'd like explore the one-of-a-kind Gallery. dmoats@eslliving.com or 970-722-8885.
Photo: Cheryl Noble (left) and Deedra Moats in The Gallery main level.
| | | Our 2026 Board of Directors (l to r): Myles Crane (Vice President), Bonnie Shetler (President), Dana Shriver (Treasurer), Wendy Abbott, Jenny Langness, Susan Gutowsky, Kim Hayes, JoAnn Herkenhoff (Secretary). | | |
Welcome Susan Gutowsky to Our Board
We give a heartfelt, warm welcome to Susan Gutowsky who joined our board in February. Susan was a former Fort Collins City Council member where she was the liaison to the Fort Collins Senior Advisory Board. She was a public school teacher for 34 years, with 26 of those years teaching middle school in the Poudre School District. After teaching she served on the Poudre School District Board of Education for two terms.
Susan's contributions to the community are numerous, and we are so grateful that she has joined our board to move our mission forward.
Welcome and thank you Susan!
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PAFC Cited in Prestigious National Journal
By Myles Crane
On the 250th anniversary of our country’s founding, the current edition of the National Civic Review includes an article "Building Community Capacity in Toxic Times: The Critical Role of Bridging Institutions.” The scholarly piece is co-authored by Professor Martin Carcasson, Director CSU’ Center for Public Deliberation (CPD) and Willow E.. Paul, a PhD student in Communication Studies at CSU.
Referencing PAFC, Dr. Carcasson writes:
“One of the best CPD (Center for Public Deliberation) stories is connected to the Partnership for Age-Friendly Communities (PAFC), a 501(c)3 that was created out of a collaborative project the CPD was involved in starting in 2009. Sparked by the impending expansion of the Fort Collins Senior Center and clear demographic trends that revealed our population over 65 was going to more than double in the coming years, we started a series of conversations addressing the question, “What sort of community do we want to have for our older residents?”
Click here to continue reading
| | | | Three No-Cost March Events | |
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PAFC Volunteer Receives CSU’s Scholarly Excellence Award
by Myles Crane
PAFC is honored to recognize longtime volunteer Dr. Ally Brothers as the 2026 recipient of CSU’s College of Health and Human Science Non-Tenure-Track Faculty/AP Scholarly Excellence Award. This award recognizes her outstanding research, creative works, and/or scholarly endeavors highlighting significant contributions that she has made to the academic community.
Her career in Psychology started with a Bachelor’s degree in Psychology (summa cum Laude) from Roanoke College, and a Master’s in Applied Psychological Research from Penn State. From 2007-2011, she worked as a Research Associate in the Penn State College of Medicine’s Department of Neurology, supporting clinical research for patients living with Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS) on the topics of neuropsychological assessment, caregiver support, advance-care planning, fall prevention and more.
Click here to read more on Dr. Brother's career and her PAFC contributions.
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I finally understand balanced nutrition: something green, something grilled, and something I probably shouldn’t have!
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What is the connection between nutrition and aging well? What does the latest research say about nutrition and older adults?
Larimer County CSU Extension is working on nutritional education for older adults. To help develop this program, they've created a short survey to gain feedback regarding nutrition and education preferences. The survey takes about five minutes.
The feedback from the survey plus the latest research will be presented at our May's Lunch and Learn to be presented on Thursday, May 14th.
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We are looking for a dynamic, visionary Executive Director who can lead our priority groups and mission to make Larimer County a livable place to age well and flourish. This is a 20 hour/week position that is primarily remote with occasional in-person events. If you're a collaborator, a good communicator, can identify funding sources and build relationships, consider this unique opportunity with us. Send your resume and cover letter to info@pafclarimer.org by 5:00 pm on Monday, March 16, 2026.
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Recently I was emailing with a high school friend, and we were comparing stories of our latest challenges – all of which involved dental or health care. We were laughing about how much our conversations have changed over the years. All at once it hit me that it wasn’t so funny – “what happened?,” I asked. When did this old age thing sneak up on us?
It really seemed like we were just going along – navigating life’s challenges: early marriages that lasted 30+ years, and ended in divorce and heartache, forging careers that were hard to let go of after forty years, busy handling family obligations – first children, then parents.
Continue reading here
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A gathering to wish Lorye well!
L to R:
Martin Carcasson, Cherrie Thornton, Bonnie Shetler
Paula Stearns, Kirsten Hartman, Lorye McLeod,
Jenny Langness, JoAnn Herkenhoff, Myles Crane
Photo by Cheryl Noble
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